Breathe In, Breathe Out
by LaughLoveLive2.0
Summary: Callie loves Erica. Erica loves Callie. Addison also loves Callie. Callie is now torn. Welcome to Seattle Grace. Callie/Erica. Callica femslash.
1. Temporary Eclipse of a Spot Filled Mind

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television and The Mark Gordon Company. I am just borrowing them for these stories.**

**Original Author's Note: For those of you who know me and have anticipated the beginning of this story, the day has finally arrived. For those of you who don't know me, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is LaughLoveLive, Triple L or Trip for short, and I am here to entertain you. I have authored 21 femslash stories that cover four fandoms; That's So Raven, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, Hannah Montana and wrestling. And before you think it, I guarantee you that if you read one of my age-progressed stories (none of those main characters are under the age of 18), you will never look at the Disney Channel the same way again (in a good way! LOL!).**

**So, if you're new to me, hello and welcome to my story. I love reviews and private messages so please, shower me with them; the more, the better. I accept constructive criticism and I laugh heartily at flames and I will answer any question that you throw at me.**

**This story will not be accurate to the actual canon of the series because I have created some canon and an original character into the mix. So when you're reading something and think that I've lost my mind and don't know what I'm talking about, it's just the story talking.**

**Now for my final standard disclaimer at the beginning of my stories… THIS IS A FEMSLASH STORY THAT DEALS WITH A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TWO WOMEN. IF THIS TYPE OF STORY IS OFFENSIVE TO YOU IN ANY FORM OR FASHION, PLEASE TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO LEAVE THIS PAGE AND MOVE ON TO ANOTHER STORY.**

**Now that that's out of the way, I present to you, Breathe In, Breathe Out. And by the way, Grey's Anatomy is about to be Triple fic'ed.**

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**New Author's Note: I know that Erica Hahn is long gone from Seattle Grace but when I started this story, she was there. For all of you that loved Callie and Erica as a couple, this story is for you. Since I am re-posting this and finishing it, please review. Even if you have read it before, please feel free to contact me. I am a male whore for reviews and PM's. I love hearing from you and I look forward to meeting you all in cyberspace.  
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**Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 1**_

**Temporary Eclipse of a Spot-Filled Mind**

(Callie's POV)

My name is Calliope Iphigenia Torres, and I am between a rock and a hard place. I have no one but myself to thank for the mess that I am in. Seattle Grace Hospital is simultaneously the best thing that has ever happened to me and my worst nightmare. The web that I have woven, while simple when compared to the Queen of Seattle Grace drama, Meredith Grey, is complex enough to make me want to rip my hair out sometimes. And on this day, that web just got a lot more complicated because "she" is back for good. Why on God's green Earth did she have to come back to Seattle? She had a new life in Los Angeles with her Wellness Center and her new friends. She didn't need Seattle, she didn't need Seattle Grace. We were in her rear view mirror. She became a part of my past, except she's not a part of my past because she's still in my head. She still makes my heart jump when I see her. The thought of her smile still warms me when she's not near me. My body still tingled when she embraced me because my body's history with her embraces suggested that more than just a simple embrace was soon to follow.

Damnit, I am still in love with her. I am still in love with Addison Forbes Montgomery and that is where the problem lies. I am still in love with Addison Forbes Montgomery and that is a huge problem because of "the other her".

You know who the other her is. The other her is my best friend and my lover. The other her is Erica Hahn. In the two years since Addison left, Erica and I have become as close as two people can become without being conjoined. I am the only person at Seattle Grace that can make that woman laugh out loud, not counting Sloan when he's being an absurdly crude pig. She is smart, funny, beautiful, sarcastic, and acerbic. She makes me feel like I don't have a care in the world, like I am THE single most important thing in her world when we are together. She is all mine and I couldn't be happier… except for the fact that Addison is back. That sexy, sultry, amazingly smart, phenomenally sweet woman is back. I can see why Derek and Mark fell for her. Hell, that's why I fell for her.

I swear I wish I could split myself in half and be with both of them. Since Mark helped me to come to terms with my feelings for Addison and was the first one to recognize the attraction between Erica and me, I asked for his advice. Why did I do that? If Mark had his way I would be with both of them – at the same time! Maybe if this was the Playboy Channel or Spice then a Callie/Addison/Erica threesome would happen, but this is real life so he can save that for is masturbatory fantasies. Although I did have a dream about the three of us once… would you call that pairing… Calladdica? Anyway, that's another story.

AAARRRGGGHHH! I hate feeling like this. I am truly the woman in the middle. Irresistible force meet immovable object. And here is the kicker… Erica and Addison have no idea I feel like this. This, ladies and gentlemen is being torn between the past and the present with only my future happiness in the balance. And to think that I laughed at Meredith's escapades, shook my head at Alex and Cristina and actually felt sorry for Izzie! After that tall, blonde goddess in surgical scrubs slept with my husband, I go and feel sorry for the mess of a human being that I thought she was and now, NOW, I go and fall in love with one woman while I was still in love with my ex. That's life I guess, huh? Well you know what? Life can be fucked up sometimes. Where's my iPod? I need to dance like an idiot. Maybe I'll fall down, hit my head and get amnesia and forget all this ever happened. Then again, with my luck McDreamy and his magical neurosurgical fingers would cure me. Forget my iPod. I need a drink.

(Erica's POV)

I am a board certified surgeon, the head of cardiothoracic surgery in the preeminent teaching hospital west of the Mississippi, finished second in my class at Johns Hopkins and was a finalist two years in a row for the Harper Avery Award, one of the most prestigious surgical awards in the country, not to mention that the hottest orthopedic surgeon in the state of Washington is my girlfriend. So why do I feel like things are gonna start spinning out of control any second? I've got a simple four-word answer for you – Doctor Addison Forbes Montgomery.

Addison and Callie used to have a thing. I get that. Callie acts a little weird around Addison. I get that. Weird looks get passed between them every now and then and lunches with the two of them have been slightly awkward. I get that too. I think Addison wants to see if Callie is still interested in her but she can't and won't try anything because of me and I can respect that. The thing that gets me is that I like Addison. What's not to like? She's smart, beautiful and has this matter-of-fact way about her that is authoritative in a disarming sort of way. Hell, if Callie wasn't in the picture, I may have taken a shot at Addison, but that's not how the cards were dealt.

Addison is not my enemy and yet she is because I perceive her to be a threat to the happiness that I know Callie and I can have together. So I am keeping an eye on her. Keep your friends close and your girlfriend's ex-lovers closer. Okay, I know that's not exactly the saying but you get my point. I trust Callie but not Addison. Is my trust misplaced? Only time will tell.

(Addison's POV)

I cannot believe I am doing this again. You would think I learned my lesson after walking into that damned hospital to "re-claim" Derek after he left me in New York. It is my fault that he slipped through my fingers. I completely underestimated that swizzle stick of a girlfriend he has now. Meredith Fucking Grey. But I'm over that now, I just like saying Meredith Fucking Grey. I don't know what her middle name is and I don't care. What I do care about is the fact that I have done "this" again. I have come back to Seattle Grace to reclaim another lost love and I will be damned if I come up empty this time.

Yes, I loved Derek Shepherd, but God help me, I am in love with Callie Torres. The happiest moments of my life were spent with that woman and to this day I still can't figure out why we didn't give the long distance thing a shot. I am a very good and at times bordering on brilliant neo-natal surgeon, but when it comes to handling relationships in transition, I am as dumb as a box of rocks.

I like Erica Hahn. I really do. But she and Callie aren't made for each other. They're good together but not that perfect fit. I can look at Callie and know what she's feeling. I can tell by the way she touches me what she is trying to say. There is a connection between us that she and Erica will never have.

History will not repeat itself. I am a little older and a little wiser now. While New York taught me that the moment is right now and you have to seize it before someone else does, California taught me to sit back and watch the situation develop and find your place within it so that you know how the game is played. That way, when your turn comes around, you are ready to play. And I am ready to play whatever hand is dealt to me. I don't want to be a homewrecker. I don't want to be "the other woman". I just want to be happy. Callie Torres is my happiness. Callie Torres is my joy. I miss her with all my heart. I need her. So if that means that some unflattering labels have to be applied to me, well, that is the price of doing business.

I am in love. The heart wants what the heart wants. And I want Callie.

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**That is your backstory. Breathe In, Breathe Out is off and running. A choice will be made before this story is over. After this first chapter, will you be in Camp Addison or Camp Erica? Without seeing a word of the next chapter, whom would you choose? This is not the last time I will ask this question.**

**Comparatively speaking, this is one of my short chapters. They will get much longer before this is said and done. Please come back. But before you do…**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	2. The Erica and Callie Show

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television and The Mark Gordon Company. I am just borrowing them for these stories.**

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**Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 2**_

**The Erica and Callie Show**

(Callie's POV)

To show you where we are right now, let me take you back to a time before life got more complicated, a time that I like to call 2008 B.A. – Before Addison.

**Monday, April 7, 2008 – 8:00 am – Main Lobby - Seattle Grace Hospital**

Erica and Callie walked into the hospital laughing. They did that quite often on the mornings they rode in together; the mornings in which they had the same shift. They would either be listening to some ridiculous morning show on the radio in the car or one of them told a joke that put the other one in stitches. It didn't happen every morning, but nine times out of ten, if Callie Torres and Erica Hahn were walking together in street clothes, one of them had a smile on their face, a laugh on their lips. On this morning, they rode in separately but met up in the parking lot. As they walked into the doctor's locker room, they were greeted by one of their colleagues.

"Morning, Lovebirds." Dr. Mark Sloan quipped. Callie quickly swatted at him and quickly swiveled her head left and right.

"Didn't I tell you to cool it?" Callie whisper-yelled to Sloan.

"Yeah Sloan. Haven't you ever heard of the expression, 'Discretion is the better part of valor'?" Erica asked in her acerbic, witty way.

"I like to indulge in the worst part of valor." Mark said. "It's a lot more fun and despite the protest of some women such as yourself, there are many women that enjoy my swashbuckling, devil-may-care attitude."

"Erica, put your waders on. We are knee-deep in bullcrap this morning." Callie said before turning her attention back to Dr. Sloan. "And you, I told you that Erica and I are not broadcasting our relationship inside this gossip mill. News spreads faster than wildfire in this place and I do not like having all eyes watch my every move. I went through that crap when I divorced George and I am not doing it again. You got that?" Sloan looked at Callie in an attempt to read her even further before glancing at Erica.

"Don't look at me. She's the one that's tearing you a new one." Erica said.

"A bit of hyperbole on your part, Dr. Hahn but I get the point. You're secret is safe with me." Mark said.

"I mean it, Mark!" Callie said. "Nobody finds out. Especially your buddy Derek. You tell Derek, he tells Princess Running Mouth and before you know it, all of Seattle Grace is in our business."

"Relax, Calliope." Mark said in his classic condescending smarmy yet charming way causing Callie to crinkle her nose in disdain. "No one found out about you and Addison and who was the only one that knew? Yours truly. So go pop some knees back into place and quit worrying so much." With that, Callie turned and went over to her locker. Erica took a step forward and looked Mark in the eyes.

"Anybody ever tell you how much of a prick you can be sometimes?" Erica spat in a low, calculating voice.

"Every day of my life. It's like a cup of coffee to me. I can't get my day started without it." Mark said sarcastically. Erica shifted her weight from one foot to the other in exasperated fashion. "Look, no one has been a more loyal confidant to Callie over the last two and a half years than me. If it wasn't for me, she wouldn't have had the balls to talk to you after Addison left, so save your mistrust for somebody that deserves it. Now if you will excuse me, I have a God complex that requires nurturing." Mark finished giving Erica a piece of his mind and turned to walk out, leaving Erica to watch him as he left.

Erica turned around to face Callie, who was looking back at her with a neutral look on her face. "And you slept with that Neanderthal?" Erica asked incredulously.

Without batting an eye, Callie responded in matter-of-fact fashion. "Good dick is good dick." Erica put her tongue in her cheek and let out an incredulous chuckle. "Oh, by the way, you dropped something."

"What?" Erica asked as her eyes fell to the floor around her feet.

"Your face… when he… lit in to you…" Callie jokingly said in little murmuring snippets to lighten the mood. "… just… pick it up… put it… back on…"

"You know what I'd be doing if we were back at your place." Erica said ominously as she took several steps toward Callie's seated position in front of her locker.

"Don't start. You know I have a locker room fantasy." Callie said with a slightly wicked look on her face. Seconds later, the flirty mood inside the locker room was broken by the bickering of two of Seattle Grace's resident surgeons.

"That's a bunch of crap, Meredith! That was my trauma and you know it!" Cristina exclaimed as she fired her surgical cap into her locker.

"Bailey told you to stop trolling the ER bay for incoming! I just came outside to do my job!" Meredith fired back as she flopped down on the bench in front of her locker.

"You already had four cases! I only had two! It's just like you to be selfish!" Cristina spat.

"Dr. Yang, since when did we start keeping score down in the pit?" Erica asked.

"Since my cardiothoracic schedule got considerably lighter." Cristina huffed.

"You know, you can always transfer to another service. I heard that neo-natal is short handed since Dr. Eggers and her right hand resident left." Erica countered.

"All due respect Dr. Hahn, but you can't get rid of me that easily." Cristina retorted.

"Can't help a girl for trying." Erica shot back as she put her lab coat on. "Dr. Torres, have a good day. I'll try to catch up to you for lunch." Erica said as she walked out.

Cristina flopped down at her locker next to Meredith. "Damnit! She will not cut me any slack!" Cristina said to herself out loud. Seconds later, there was a knock on the door. The door eased open and one of Cristina's interns stuck her head inside.

"Excuse me, Dr. Yang?" The young female intern said.

"WHAT?" Cristina snapped.

"Dr. Bailey sent me to find you. She needs you back down in the pit. Either that or she said, and I'm quoting here, 'Get your narrow ass down to the clinic.' End quote." The intern said causing Meredith and Callie to snicker. The intern stood at the door awaiting Cristina's response.

"Tell her… I'm taking my narrow ass back to the pit!" Cristina said with maximum frustration. "If I have to give out one more birth control pamphlet, I'm gonna puke."

"I'll go back down with you. You can take Mr. Jackson off my hands." Meredith said as they stood up and began walking to the door.

"He's 72 years old and has herpes!" Cristina scoffed.

"You said you wanted another case. I'm offering one to you." Meredith said.

"You know what Meredith?..." Cristina said before the two women launched into another bickering match. Callie, who had finished changing, stood up and began walking out behind them.

"Are you two sure you're not a couple? Cause I swear you act like one?" Callie joked. Meredith and Cristina paused long enough to look at Callie and roll their eyes before starting their argument back up. They walked out of the door with Callie several steps behind them. Just as she reached the threshold of the door, Erica reappeared. "Oh! Hey! Forget something?"

Callie stepped back inside to allow Erica to pass. When she did, she wheeled around and closed the door behind Callie. "Yeah. This." Erica said before grabbing Callie by the shoulders and pulling her toward her, spinning her around and pinning her against the door. Without a pause, Erica pressed her lips to Callie's causing the gorgeous Latina to moan softly in surprise. It only to Callie a few seconds to melt into the kiss that grew more passionate by the second. Callie was about five seconds away from breaking their self-imposed "no sex in the on-call room" rule, when Erica pulled away. "Now I can start my day."

Callie grinned and bit her bottom lip. "You're making it impossible for me not to think about you and that mouth today." Callie purred.

"That's the idea." Erica purred in return. "Have a good day, Dr. Torres."

"You too, Dr. Hahn." Callie responded as she smoothed out Erica's lab coat and wiped her lip gloss from Erica's lips. She then stepped aside to allow Erica to leave. Callie then took a deep breath before reaching inside her lab coat and pulling out her tube of lip gloss to re-apply it. "A very good day indeed." Callie said to herself with a sexy grin before departing from the locker room.

Callie walked down to the nurses' station near the pit and saw Dr. Miranda Bailey, Seattle Grace's spitfire of a chief resident, with a stack of charts in front of her. Sensing a presence in front of her, Dr. Bailey looked up.

"Good morning, Dr. Torres." Dr. Bailey said before dropping her head back down.

"Morning, Dr. Bailey." Callie said. "Need a hand with those charts?"

Bailey looked back up and cocked her head to one side in surprise. "You… **want** to do charts?" Bailey asked.

"I just checked the board and nothing is going on right now so… yeah. I want to do charts." Callie said with a smile.

Bailey chuckled. "Far be it from me to look a gift horse in the mouth. Here you go, Dr. Torres. Have fun." Bailey said as she handed Callie approximately ten charts.

Callie looked at the stack of charts in her hand and wondered what she got herself into. "On second thought…" Callie said as she attempted to hand the charts back.

"Noooo, ma'am! No givesies-backsies." Bailey said. "Those charts are yours, Dr. Torres. Thank you for playing and have a great day."

"Anything to help, Dr. Bailey." Callie said hesitantly as she took the charts and headed for the nearest secluded location.

She walked into what she believed was an empty conference room. She plopped the stack of charts onto the table. The sharp sound of metal on wood startled the person that Callie didn't notice when she walked in.

"Jesus!" Callie's head snapped up and toward the far end of the conference table where the voice came from. It was the voice of Dr. Derek Shepherd. "And good morning to you too, Dr. Torres."

"Oh! Dr. Shepherd, I'm sorry! I… didn't see you sitting there." Callie said as she went to pick up her charts.

"Please. Sit." Derek said. "There's room enough for two." He then took another look at the stack of charts in front of Callie. "Dr. Bailey sucker you into doing those?"

"No. I volunteered." Callie said as she opened the first chart.

"You're a better team player than I. I hate doing my own charts. I wish I had a secretary." Derek said.

"Well, George was the chief's special intern, maybe you can take him under your wing." Callie said of her ex-husband's stint as the special intern for the hospital's chief of surgery. Derek took note of the sarcasm in her voice when talking about George and decided to ask about it.

"So how are you doing with that?" Derek asked.

"With what? George? Fine. Just professional. He calls me Dr. Torres, I call him Dr. O'Malley and that's that." Callie said. Derek nodded. "How do you do it? How do you walk around here knowing that everybody knows about you and Meredith? Everybody here being all in your business?"

Derek sat his chart down and looked at Callie. "The secret to me not telling somebody off in this place some days is that I don't give a damn what anybody thinks about Meredith and me." Derek said in his customary calm voice. "People can say what they want to say and make whatever judgments they want about us, but at the end of the day, there are only two people from Seattle Grace Hospital that sleep in our bed, Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd. I love her and she loves me and ours are the only two opinions that count in my book."

"So I care too much about what other people think?" Callie asked.

"You are your own woman, so I can't tell you what to think and how to feel." Derek said. "I can tell you that you are doing the right thing by not sharing your relationship with Erica with everybody."

Callie's face darkened. "I swear to God I am gonna kill that sonofabitch!" Callie spat.

"If the sonofabitch you're referring to is Mark, he didn't say a word to me." Derek said. Callie's face morphed from anger into confusion. "You and Dr. Hahn give off this vibe that I picked up on. Plus in the last surgery the three of us did, you two were kind of giving each other that look with your eyes."

"We were not!" Callie scoffed.

"Yeah, you were. The other people in the OR just chalk it up to being in the middle of another episode of The Callie and Erica Show, but I saw something. I wasn't sure about it, but you threatening to kill Mark for telling me clinched it." Derek said with a smile.

"The Callie and Erica Show?" Callie asked.

"I overheard a couple of nurses talking. You two are like the Ethel and Lucy of Seattle Grace without all the sight gags." Derek said.

"I thought that was Meredith and Cristina." Callie replied.

"Meredith is Cristina's… person. Cristina is Meredith's person. I can't explain it. People who need people." Derek said. "And speaking of people… I'm gonna let you two talk. Dr. Torres." Derek stood up with charts in hand. "Dr. Hahn."

"Dr. Shepherd." Erica said with a smirk as he walked past. When he left, Erica addressed Callie as she sat down. "Seems like I interrupted a nice non-work related conversation."

"You're not threatened are you?" Callie asked.

"Not in the least." Erica said with a smoky, lusty haze in her eyes.

"This conference room has windows." Callie said ominously.

"I am just sitting here having a conversation with a colleague." Erica reasoned.

"A colleague that Shepherd saw flirting with you with her eyes in the OR. He knows about us." Callie said.

"Oh great. Now that pipe cleaner of a girlfriend of his will blab to all her little friends about us and we'll become the talk of the hospital. Lovely." Erica said sarcastically.

"I get the feeling from him that he's gonna keep it to himself." Callie said.

"I wish I were as confident as you." Erica said.

"Well why don't you save your confidence for tonight." Callie said, her sexy grin returning.

"And what pray tell is happening tonight?" Erica asked.

"Same thing that happened last night and the night before that." Callie said.

"Damn right it is." Erica purred. "Page me the second you get off."

"Consider yourself paged." Callie purred in response as Erica flashed a devilish grin and walked out of the conference room to leave Callie to her charts.

**Monday, April 7, 2008 – 10:35 pm – Callie's apartment**

The two cars pulled into the parking lot one right behind the other – Erica's cobalt blue 2008 Honda Accord LX right behind Callie's candy apple red 2007 Ford Mustang. There was one purpose, one uniform goal for the two women as they got out of their cars – to get to Callie's front door as soon as possible. When Callie and Erica got horny for each other, there was no stopping the inevitable. Both women had to have the other one at all costs. Twice, only the presence of Dr. Bailey prevented them from carrying out the first lesbian hook-up in one of Seattle Grace's on-call rooms. There were itches to be scratched, and both women had the claws to satisfy said itch.

Callie reached her front door first with Erica right behind her. Erica pressed herself into Callie, pinning her against the door until Callie could open it. Callie barely had time to snatch the keys out of the front door when Erica spun her around, closing the front door with Callie's back. The kissing took on a legendary intensity almost immediately.

"Are we gonna make it to the bedroom this time?" Callie breathlessly asked as she was in the process of being undressed.

"Maybe." Erica replied. "But I know your clothes won't."

Callie's fingers worked in equally nimble fashion on Erica's blouse and jeans. "I don't think your clothes are gonna make it either." Callie shot back.

"It's a good thing I wore your favorite underwear today." Erica said as she was being devoured.

Callie grinned wickedly when she reached Erica's uncharacteristically delicate lace-trimmed bra and panty set in a brilliant shade of teal.

"I like that." Callie chuckled sexily as they kissed. "But I like what's underneath much better." With that, Callie bent her head down and gave Erica's erect nipple a playful bite through the lacy fabric, causing the beautiful surgeon to throw her head back, allowing her blonde mane to fall away from her. With Callie's arms securely wrapped around her waist, Erica began backpedaling toward the bedroom as Callie worked her way up and began sucking on the pulse point on Erica's neck.

"Remember, we're too old for hickeys." Erica teased as they reached the threshold of the bedroom.

"Don't worry. Where I plan on sucking, I'm not leaving any marks." Callie growled just before unclasping Erica's bra and taking one of her rosy nipples into her mouth. Erica drew breath in between her teeth as Callie sucked deeply and flicked her tongue against the rosy bud. Callie switched nipples causing Erica to purr. "I love it when you make that noise." Callie whispered before lowering her mouth onto Erica's nipple once more.

"You… doing that… makes it easy." Erica eked out. Callie continued to overwhelm Erica's senses for several more moments until Erica decided that it was time for her to have a little fun as well. Erica ran her fingers through Callie's brilliantly black hair before giving it a forceful tug, making Callie gasp, shudder and then grin.

"Did you really think I was gonna let you dominate me without a fight?" Erica said in a low, sexy growl.

"No. I knew better than that. I was counting on it." Callie said with a burning lust in her eyes. Erica knew just how hard to pull her hair to have it turn her on. Callie and Erica were not into pain by any stretch of the imagination. But they enjoyed a little rough play complete with hair pulling as much as the next gal.

Erica then flipped Callie over onto her back and settled in between her legs. She then grabbed two handfuls of Callie's hair and gave a gentle tug causing Callie's eyes to stretch open and sparkle with arousal. She then bent down and delivered a scorching kiss that led into another round of kissing that had both women panting and moaning in ecstatic pleasure. When Erica broke the kiss for some air, Callie issued a challenge.

"I'm gonna make you scream, Hahn." Callie purred with primal lust.

"Bullshit. I'm not a screamer." Erica sexily growled back. "You're the one that screams."

"I know I scream. We're not talking about me. We're talking about you and how I'm gonna light your ass on fire." Callie purred again as she reached down in between their bodies and swept her index finger over Erica's moistened clit causing the blonde to shudder. Erica collected herself and defiantly answered Callie's challenge.

"You're gonna have to do a lot better than that if you want me to scream." Erica saucily said.

"Oh. Okay. Like this." Callie said before tracing slow circles around Erica's clit followed by sliding the tip of her finger inside Erica and slowly curling it repeatedly.

Erica dropped her head, allowing her hair to cascade around her face. "Holy… shit." She whispered. "What are… you doing?"

"Finding you spot." Callie purred as she looked up at Erica, whose eyes rolled in the back of her head in delight. For the second time that evening, Callie caused Erica to draw breath between her teeth as she continued to stroke her lover. "Roll over." Callie softly ordered. Anyone that knew Erica would think that she would be the dominant one at all times in their relationship. And while she had her moments, Callie knew how and when to take control and on this night, this was her moment and Erica was her woman.

Erica lay down in her back as Callie re-inserted her finger and resumed her curling. Erica's body arched and pitched as Callie continued. Erica's normally soft moans and hums grew in volume as time passed. At one point she let out an audible gasp that Callie had never heard before.

"You're… serious… about… making me… scream." Erica panted incredulously. Callie's response was to add a second finger to the first. "AAAGGGHH…." Erica cut her own grunt off by turning her head and biting into the pillow next to her. Callie continued her expert strokes making Erica's utterances increase in both volume and intensity. It was at this point that Erica's staccato moans were consistent. It was at this point that Callie knew that Erica had reached a level of pleasure that she had never experienced before. Erica Hahn was normally a cool, calm reserved customer that was always in control, even in the bedroom. Tonight, Callie was allowing her to let go.

"You ready to start screaming?" Callie asked in a soft, loving way.

"I still… don't think… you can… make me scream." Erica barely squeezed out with every ounce of self-control she had left.

"Okay, baby. Whatever you say." Callie repeated in her syrupy-sweet voice. "Now close your eyes and let me give you a kiss." Erica closed her eyes and Callie delivered on her promise of a kiss. Callie continued stroking Erica while lowering her head and gently and rapidly flicking her tongue against Erica, delicately pushing back the skin that sheathed her clit. When she did this, Erica nearly levitated off the bed.

"OH MY GOD CALLIE!" Erica cried out and her body jerked. Callie said nothing in response as her focus was fixed on bringing Erica to an ultimate end. Erica's body thrashed underneath Callie as the volume of her cries increased almost exponentially. It was no longer a matter of whether or not Callie could or would make Erica scream, it was simply a matter of how loudly she would scream. The building crescendo within Erica came to its peak as for the second time that evening she used a pillow this time to muffle the profane bellow that emptied her lungs of air and signaled the arrival of a most satisfying climax. Callie bit her bottom lip and grinned a self-satisfied grin as she gazed at the state of her lover – eyes fluttering, chest heaving, still trying to catch her breath after her intense orgasm. Callie propped herself up on her elbow and lay on her side as she looked at Erica.

"You took… great pleasure… in doing that to me. Didn't you?" Erica said softly as the breath returned to her lungs.

"It's not every day that the cool-as-a-cucumber, world-class chief of cardiothoracic surgery…" Erica chuckled at Callie's glowing description of her. "… the great Erica Hahn loses her cool and calm composure."

"It's not every day that a fiery, sexy attending orthopedic surgeon finds my spot and repeatedly dances on it." Erica replied with a smile.

"So what are you gonna do about it?" Callie challenged.

"Well…" Erica started as she rolled over onto her side to face Callie before climbing on top of her, rolling Callie onto her back. "I'm gonna start by kissing you right here…" Erica leaned down to press her lips to Callie's. "… kiss you some more…" Both women parted their lips slightly for a deeper kiss that made both of them moan softly. "… then I'm going to move…" Erica began kissing along Callie's jaw line down to her neck and collarbone. "… down your body." Erica paused at the swells of Callie's breasts before continuing, gently sucking one of the hardened nipples causing Callie to exhale and hum. Erica continued for several minutes before resuming her descent down Callie's voluptuous frame, pausing again as she reached the top of the thin strip of dark hair just above her center. She then gave Callie a long, lingering lick that made the beautiful Latina roll her eyes and close them as she purred, clutching the sheets just above her head. After several moments of the slow but intense oral lovemaking, Callie had a message for her companion.

"You're killing me. You know that, right?" Callie breathlessly uttered.

"If you're gonna die, it might as well be like this." Erica said softly as she snaked her tongue out to continue Callie's erotic torture.

For the next few minutes, Erica sent Callie on a roller coaster of intense pleasure, bringing her to the edge and back again. The slow pace allowed Callie's body to build up a roaring inferno of concentrated sensations that consumed her. Where Erica panted and screamed, Callie let out a series of guttural moans and deep purrs that would delight the ears of anyone in the room with her. When Erica switched tactics and gently sucked Callie's clit with short pulses, Callie began shaking and moaning as her body began to release the tension it had been holding for so long. Callie ran her hands through Erica's hair and when the apex of her orgasm began, her grip on Erica's locks tightened. Callie endured her longer-than-usual climax, riding the blissful wave magnificently. When her body finally released her, she let out a breathy sigh that made Erica smile from ear-to-ear a she slid up next to Callie.

"Oh my… god that was good!" Callie announced with a sexy chuckle mixed in.

"It looked like it was." Erica replied.

"You watched me come?" Callie asked.

"It was the highlight of my day." Erica shot back. "You look so good when you do."

"Wanna watch me again?" Callie asked as she stretched her eyes in anticipation.

"Aren't we greedy tonight." Erica cooed.

"Damn right I am. You got a problem with that?" Callie asked as she took Erica's hand and placed it between her own legs.

"None whatsoever." Erica said as she kissed Callie and then pulled back. "Just don't tire yourself out too much. Save some for me."

"The Callie and Erica Show. This show rocks." Callie said almost under her breath.

"What?" Erica asked in between kisses.

"Nothing. Shut up and kiss me." Callie ordered sexily.

"Your turn to scream, Torres." Erica countered as she captured Callie in another torrid kiss that led to another hour of passionate lovemaking.

* * *

**And now the official Triple L stamp of authenticity has been put on this story. So this much we know so far… Erica loves Callie. Callie loves Erica. Callie also loves Addison. Addison likes Erica as a person but won't hesitate to break her heart to win Callie back. Erica likes Addison as a person but won't hesitate to break her heart to keep the woman she loves. Okay. Now it's on to chapter three. And with the beginning of chapter three will come the third axis of this love triangle, Addison Montgomery. Come see what I have in store. But before you do…**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	3. Voodoo Chile

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I am just borrowing them for these stories.**

**Author's Note: I know what you're thinking. What's up with the title of this chapter? Well, Voodoo Chile as you may or may not know, is a song by Jimi Hendrix. The meaning of the chapter title will become clear as you read the chapter.**

**

* * *

Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 3**_

**Voodoo Chile**

**Friday, May 2, 2008 – 11 am – Interstate Bridge, between Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington**

(Addison's POV)

I'll be back home in two and a half hours. A few years ago I would have never considered Seattle to be my home but that is exactly what it is to me now. Home is where my heart is. My heart never really left. As maddening as the whole Derek-Meredith fiasco was, I have made peace with it. I have actually grown up to the point where Derek Christopher Shepherd is actually my friend. I have actually grown up to where I consider Meredith Grey to be someone that I don't want to strangle every time I see her. In that sense, I have changed, changed my outlook on life, on friendships, on people in general. But, the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Here I am headed back to Seattle, chasing after another love that got away. Only this time I didn't drive my love away. I left willingly. I left Seattle in search of a professional challenge. I felt like I was growing stale. Surgery after surgery, chart after chart, and the mundane sameness of each day at Seattle Grace was starting to wear on me. Not to mention that every time I turned around, reminders of my past failures surrounded me – Derek and Meredith, Mark, Karev.

I asked her to come with me. I begged her to come with me. Naomi had created a spot for an orthopedic specialist. But she said no. She was sweet about turning me down but she felt like her future was at Seattle Grace. She said that she knew that "Head of Orthopedics" was a stones throw or two away for her and I respected her for that feeling. Yeah, I respected her feeling after I started a big fight about it, and accusing her of not being committed to us. I was tired, frustrated and just plain wrong. She had every right to want to stay. Being Head of Orthopedics at Seattle Grace would mean everything to her career. She could practically name her next stop – UCLA, Cedars Sinai, Johns Hopkins… anywhere. Damn her. Damn her for wanting to get to where I already am. I say that jokingly of course. I am proud of her. We made up before I left and to this day we are still good friends who talk on the telephone a once or twice a month. And every time I talk to her, I realize how much I miss her and love her and want to be with her again.

Yes, I know about Erica. I would have been lying to myself if I thought that she would just crawl into a hole and stop dating after I left. She doesn't mention Erica to me that often so that tells me how happy she is. She knows I'm not seeing anyone and doesn't want to throw her happiness up in my face. That's one of the reasons I love her so much. I know that I probably can't get her back and that I am setting myself up for more heartache, but I have to try. I have to go back. I have to be near her even if it is just as a friend. But I am holding out hope that by divine providence that it turns out to be much more.

_**FLASHBACK – (Tuesday, April 1, 2008 – Office of Naomi Bennett - Oceanside Wellness Centre – Los Angeles, California)**_

Naomi was sitting at her desk going over patients' charts when a knock on the frame of her open office door caused her to look up.

"Hey you." Naomi said to Addison who flashed her a small smile. "How was the mini-vacation?"

"Too much mini, not enough vacation." Addison quipped as she stepped inside and sat down. "But I'd rather have a little bit of San Diego than none at all."

"Amen to that." Naomi said. "So what's on your mind? You have that serious Addison face working this morning. Still thinking about that case Cooper gave you?" She asked referring to the resident pediatrician at the clinic, Dr. Cooper Freedman.

"Furthest thing from my mind." Addison said. "Actually, I was still trying to figure out a way to give you this." Addison handed Naomi a sheet of paper she pulled out of her leather portfolio. Naomi studied the piece of paper for a moment. She then appeared to re-read it before placing it on the desk in front of her.

"This is a resignation letter." Naomi said.

"Yes it is." Addison said.

"This is YOUR resignation letter." Naomi said.

"That it is." Addison said.

"Addy, I enjoy a good April Fool's joke just as well as the next girl but isn't this going a little too far?" Naomi asked.

"It would be going too far if it was a joke but it's not a joke. I'm giving you 30 days notice." Addison announced.

Naomi paused for a moment. "You told me that the only reason that you would leave was if…"

"I'm going back." Addison answered.

"She's with somebody else now." Naomi said.

"I know. But…"

"You ran after Derek when he left you, now you're running back to Callie after you left her. Oh did I mention that both of them moved on after you? Why is this time different? And don't give me some crap about you being different." Naomi said.

"Something is waiting for me in Seattle. I got the same feeling when I left New York and I got the same feeling when I left Seattle the first time about L.A." Addison said.

"A rolling stone gathers no moss." Naomi said.

"Are you kidding me? I have moss oozing from my armpits!" Addison said.

Naomi looked at the determined look of her longtime friend. "You're leaving me again." She said.

"I know." Addison said softly.

"I'm not holding your job for you like they did in Seattle." Naomi said of Addison's trip back for a special case a year earlier.

"I don't expect you to." Addison replied.

"I'm not coming to visit you." Naomi joked defiantly.

"I'll visit you and I'll bring back some authentic Starbucks coffee with me." Addison teased.

"I hate you." Naomi teased with a tear in her eye.

Addison stood up and walked around the edge of the desk to embrace Naomi. "I love you too." She said with a toothless smile as her eyes welled up with tears.

**END OF FLASHBACK**

"All right." Addison said out loud to herself as the sun came out from behind to clouds. She pushed the button to open the top on her convertible. She then hit the button on her radio for the mix CD that Dell, Oceanside's receptionist, made for her as a going away gift. "Emerald City, here I come." The speakers inside her car came to life with the sounds of one of the songs from the soundtrack of the movie, _Superbad_, called "Here I Come", by The Roots.

_He said yeah  
You better come out with_

_your hands up  
We got you surrounded  
I'm in the back  
Changin my outfit  
He said blink  
We gonna send the hounds in  
I said wait  
Cause here I come  
Here I come  
Here I come  
You boys get ready  
Cause here I come  
Here I come  
Here I come_

**Monday, May 5, 2008 – 10 am – Second floor - Seattle Grace Hospital**

"Where did all the attendings disappear to?" Callie asked of Dr. Bailey as they walked toward the stairs leading down to the first floor nurses station.

"The Chief called an all-hands meeting for all the attendings in the hospital. That means he hired a new head of Neo-natal." Bailey said.

"Who do you think it is?" Callie asked.

"Do I look like Carnac the Magnificent?" Bailey said of Johnny Carson's legendary psychic character on The Tonight Show.

"Who's Carnac?" Callie asked.

Bailey looked at her with a puzzled look on her face. "Carnac. The psychic. Johnny Carson? The Tonight Show? Never mind. Look if I had to bet, I'd put my money on Sam Gregory from Johns Hopkins." Bailey said as they neared the stairs. With Callie looking at her, Bailey continued her explanation. "She's the number two ranked OB/GYN in the country and The Chief has had a professional hard-on for her ever since Addison left."

Callie chuckled. "Wouldn't it be something if The Chief talked Addison into coming back?" She joked.

Bailey reached the stairs. As she looked out at the entrance to the hospital, she stopped dead in her tracks. "Well I'll be damned." She said in astonishment. "You sure you don't know who Carnac is? Cause you just did one **hell** of an impersonation."

Callie turned her head to look in the same direction that Bailey was looking. When her eyes fell upon the main entrance, the world around her slowed to a crawl. It was her. Walking through the doors of Seattle Grace with her work bag in hand and lab coat draped over her arm was her best friend, her ex-lover and by all visual accounts, the new head of Neo-Natal Surgery, former Neo-Natal head Addison Forbes Montgomery. It was then that she heard it in her head. That song. The best sex they had in their year-long relationship was set to the song that was playing in her head, Jimi Hendrix's Voodoo Chile (Slight Return).

_Well, I stand up next to a mountain  
And I chop it down with the edge of my hand.  
Well, I stand up next to a mountain,  
Chop it down with the edge of my hand.  
Well, I pick up all the pieces and make an island,  
Might even raise just a little sand.  
cause I'm a voodoo chile,  
Lord knows I'm a voodoo chile, baby._

"Callie." Bailey said. She got no response. "Callie." Still no response. "DOCTOR TORRES!"

"Huh?" Callie snapped out of her trance.

"Are you all right?" Bailey said. "You zoned out like you're on crack or something."

"I'm fine. I just thought about something." Just then Callie's pager went off. "Gotta case. I'll see you later."

"Mmm hmm." Bailey said as she watched Callie walk away.

Moments earlier in the conference room, speculation was running rampant as to the identity of the new Neo-natal boss.

"So who do you think it is?" Derek asked Mark.

"I don't know and I don't care." Mark huffed. "Just post the damn name on the board and let us get back to work. These staff meetings are a monumental waste of time."

"You weren't saying that when you were the star of one of these meet-and-greets." Derek said. "Just face it. You're not the center of attention and it bugs the hell out of you."

"While I would admit that it is nice to have people fawn over me, my ego is not that massive that I have to be the center of attention 24-7." Mark said. "Eighteen hours is sufficient for one day." He said with a smirk causing Derek to flash his trademark "you're a smart ass" smile.

"Well, gentlemen, place your bets." Erica said as she walked up to Derek and Mark.

"You're putting action on who the new Neo-natal chief is?" Derek asked.

"Why not. A little friendly wagering never killed anyone." Erica said. "Whomever you two geniuses take, I'm betting against you and taking the field."

Mark looked at Derek and then at Erica before reaching in his pocket. "Why not. It'll keep me from falling asleep. Here's twenty on the hot chick from Hopkins."

"By 'the hot chick from Hopkins', are you referring to Samantha Gregory?" Erica inquired.

"That's what I said. The hot chick from Hopkins." Mark said.

"Does it even matter to you that she is one of the leading OB/GYN surgeons in the country? Harper Avery semifinalist last year and a Harvard fellow two years before that?" Erica countered.

"Of course it matters. The more prestigious her credentials are, the more satisfying it will be when I sleep with her." Mark said, causing Derek to drop and shake his head before he reached in his pocket and pulled out a twenty dollar bill.

"I'm putting my money on Elizabeth Standiford from Northwestern. I have a friend there that said she was looking for a new place to hang her hat. This is as good a place as any." Derek said.

Erica took the twenty from Derek before looking at Mark disdainfully. "Neanderthal." She spat before turning to take a seat at the table.

"It's McNeanderthal to you!" Derek shot back. "Since everybody around here is named McSomething or other, the least you can do is be consistent."

Erica flopped down into the chair and swiveled around to face Mark just long enough to mutter, "Jackass." She then swiveled back around just as The Chief walked into the room.

"All right people. Settle down. Everybody take your seats." Dr. Richard Webber, Chief of Surgery at Seattle Grace, said. "As long as you let me say what I have to say, this won't take too long." Everyone took their seats and turned their full attention to him. "As you all know, one of our specialties has been without a head surgeon since Dr. Eggers left for Mercy West. I still don't know why she did that. It's like going from a major league ball club down to the minor leagues." Everyone chuckled. "But I digress. It has been my goal as chief to make Seattle Grace stand out as THE best teaching hospital not just in the Northwest or the West Coast but the entire country, and to do that, we need to have the best surgeons, the best teachers here to do just that – to perform surgery and teach our residents and interns the best way to do it. With that in mind, I brought in one of the best surgeons in her field to help us stay great."

"It's the hottie from Hopkins. The money is mine." Mark whispered to Derek over his shoulder.

"Not a chance. Standiford's the woman. And I'm buying a huge steak with my winnings." Derek whispered back.

"Well it's very ironic that you two would be talking during this introduction since you two know this doctor better than everyone else in here." Dr. Webber said to Mark and Derek. "Ladies and gentlemen, our new head of Neo-natal Surgery, our old friend, Doctor Addison Forbes Montgomery."

Three doctors inside the conference room had the exact same thought inside their heads.

Derek: "Son…"

Mark: "… of a…"

Erica: "… bitch."

Derek and Mark looked at each other with shell-shocked looks on their faces as the door to the conference room opened. Their heads immediately turned toward the open door as Addison confidently strode into the conference room, discounting their initial thought that the announcement was some ridiculous joke. Then both men shot a quick glance over toward Erica, with both of them realizing that Addison's permanent presence would impact her in a personal way. Erica remained stone-faced but her eyes never left Addison as she walked in the door and embraced Dr. Webber. About a million different questions ran through Erica's head at that moment, first and foremost was whether or not Callie had yet seen her ex.

"Thank you, Chief." Addison started. She then sighed. "I only see a few people in here that I don't know so to all of you, hi! And to the rest of you, I'm baaaack!" Addison chuckled. "I look forward to working with all of you… again. This is really the best surgical staff I have ever worked with. I've had a few spirited disagreements with most of you…" She then looked at Mark and Derek. "… some of you more than others…" Derek again flashed his trademark smile while Mark smirked. "…but all in all, I enjoyed my first stint here and I know that this one will be just as rewarding." Erica's facial expression never changed, showing no emotion whatsoever. "Thank you and I guess I'll see you all out there!" Addison's comments were met with polite applause.

"See, I told y'all this wouldn't take too long. Back to work everybody." Dr. Webber said, adjourning the meeting. "Welcome back Addison." Dr. Webber said as he embraced her again.

"Thank you Richard." Addison said with a smile. Derek and Mark stepped forward. Erica stood up and walked around to the other side of the table about five steps behind Derek and Mark.

"Normally when hurricanes come ashore, you get some kind of warning." Derek said jokingly.

"It's good to see you too." Addison said with a smirk as she embraced Derek. "How's Meredith doing?"

"Like you care." Derek said as he broke the embrace.

"I do care. I have turned over a new leaf." Addison said. "Meredith Grey is no longer an enemy to me. She is another person, a doctor, that has something in common with me."

"Yeah, you've both rolled around in the sack with McDreamy here." Mark said.

"Sometimes, I wonder why I still talk to you." Addison said with exasperation as she threw her arms open to embrace Mark.

"You've always had a soft spot for dogs." Derek joked causing Addison to laugh as she pulled away from Mark.

"Payback's a bitch, Shepherd." Mark said to his best friend.

"It certainly is Doctor Sloan." Erica said as she stepped forward with the two twenties in her hand. "And since you lost the bet, the bitch in this case cost twenty dollars." Erica did not dislike Addison at all, but her presence definitely made her a little uneasy given the open ended way Addison and Callie parted ways. Despite that niggling fact in the back of her mind, Erica was on her best behavior as she greeted Addison. "Doctor Montgomery, it's a pleasure to see you again."

"The hell it is." Mark said under his breath just loud enough for Erica to hear just before she stepped forward to shake Addison's hand.

Erica stuck her hand out to shake which Addison clasped warmly. "Good to see you too. I can't wait to get back into the OR with you." Addison said.

"I'm looking forward to it." Erica said. She then decided to step up and put any potential jealousy inside her aside. "Have you seen Callie yet?"

"Not yet." Addison said. "I walked straight in and to the conference room."

"I know she'll flip out when she sees you." Erica said with a smile.

"I bet." Addison replied with a slightly nervous chuckle.

"Wanna put some money on that one?" Mark said sarcastically. Erica shot a dirty look his way.

"What's with the betting today?" Addison asked.

"These two numbnuts and myself put a friendly wager on who the new Baby Chief was gonna be." Erica said. "Doctor Shepherd here picked Liz Standiford from Northwestern and Doctor Cro-Magnon here picked 'the hot chick from Johns Hopkins'." Erica spat the last quote out like it was laced with castor oil.

"Well, while Sam Gregory is indeed a hot chick, you got the hot chick from Oceanside Wellness instead." Addison said. "Although referring to competent surgeons as hot chicks might not be the most politically correct thing to do." Addison paused for a second. "Oh, who am I kidding. Look who I'm talking about. I'm sure he has the whole Girls Gone Wild series on DVD."

"I get 'em from Netflix. It's cheaper." Mark shot back.

"Okay! I'm gonna go now, get set up in my office." Addison said. "See you guys in the trenches." She said before flashing a smile and walking away from the group.

Without warning, Erica walked up to Mark and punched him in the arm.

"OWWW!" Mark exclaimed with an amused chuckle as he held his upper left arm. "What was that for?"

"Thinking what I know you were thinking about Girls Gone Wild: Seattle Grace edition." Erica spat. "And being an asshole." She added before turning to walk away.

"But I'm so good at it!" Mark called out to her. Without turning to look at him, Erica lifted her right arm and extended her middle finger as she walked out of the conference room.

"You're not gonna be happy until everything in this hospital with a vagina hates your guts." Derek chided. "What are you gonna do for kicks then?"

"Transfer to Mercy West. What else?" Mark said.

Derek looked at Mark for a moment before he delivered his parting shot. "Erica's right. You are an asshole." Derek said and then smirked as he walked away.

"But I'm still your best friend!" Mark called out to Derek as he left the conference room.

**Monday, May 5, 2008 – 1 pm – Addison's office - Seattle Grace Hospital**

Addison had spent a portion of the morning setting up her office, putting awards and pictures on the walls, her desk and her credenza. She then settled down to go over charts of the patients that were now under her charge. The Chief had recently issued an edict that residents could not zero in on a particular specialty. They were now on a rotation and Addison had yet to see the rotation chart, therefore she was having a tough time matching up in her mind residents to the patients' profiles.

Stepping off the elevator on Addison's floor, Callie paused as the elevator doors closed behind her. Callie hadn't laid eyes on Addison since before she had started dating Erica. When Addison came back to the hospital over a year earlier to work on a difficult Neo-Natal case, Callie had contemplated trying a long distance relationship with her but determined in her mind that things would be too complicated so she scrapped the idea before offering the option to Addison.

Callie and Addison had settled into the role of exes that were good friends who called each other once a month and emailed occasionally. But in Callie's mind, the break wasn't as clean as it could have and perhaps should have been. Her visceral reaction to seeing Addison when she walked into the hospital that morning confirmed in her mind that she had to nip this nagging, lingering feeling inside her in the bud before it got out of control. At this point she didn't know whether it was love, lust or infatuation but whatever it was, there was no room for it and the love that she knew she had for Erica. She decided that the best way for her to deal with it was to confront the problem head on – look Addison in the face, say hello, tell Addison that she's in love and everything with Erica is roses and that life is good.

Callie took a deep breath to steel herself and began walking down the hallway. She reached Addison's door and lightly knocked. _"COME IN!"_ Addison called out from the other side of the door. Callie eased the door open. Addison was sitting behind her desk with her head down, looking at a file. When she heard the door open, she took her reading glasses off and looked up. It was then that Callie heard that damned song in her head again.

_Well, I stand up next to a mountain  
And I chop it down with the edge of my hand.  
Well, I stand up next to a mountain,  
Chop it down with the edge of my hand.  
Well, I pick up all the pieces and make an island,  
Might even raise just a little sand.  
cause I'm a voodoo chile,  
Lord knows I'm a voodoo chile, baby._

Meanwhile, Addison felt a lump form in her throat as she looked at Callie. The woman looked even better than she remembered. And it was at that moment that her brain pulled every naked moment the two of them shared from the recesses of Addison's memory as she looked the voluptuous Latina in the eye. Fortunately for her, Callie appeared to be even more zoned out than she was. Addison was the first one to blink.

"Cal?" Addison said. "Are you just gonna stand there like a statue or are you gonna come give me a hug?"

Callie came back to herself in time to snap off a quick-witted retort. "I was just… taking in all of your glorious beauty."

"You are so full of crap." Addison teased. "Come here." Addison stepped from behind her desk and Callie spine stiffened. The fiery red hair, the lean curvy silhouette, the killer legs, the stiletto heels… it was going to be tougher than Callie thought. Addison embraced Callie. It was going to be **a lot** tougher than Callie thought.

* * *

**I was gonna keep going but this looked like a good place to stop. We'll see the rest of Callie's visit to Addison's office along with other stuff in chapter five. And just to warn those of you who don't know me, I always have a surprise or two up my sleeve in my stories and you never know who might pop up at any given moment, even if they are from another TV program. I'll give you a hint. Always look at my disclaimers at the top of the chapter page. If I add characters from another show in that chapter, I always credit the production company. So right now it's ****ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I guarantee this list will grow before this story is over. See you in chapter four!**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	4. Ladies, Start Your Engines

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I am just borrowing them for these stories. Original characters are owned by the author of this story.**

**Author's Note: "Original characters are owned by the author of this story.**" **You know what that means, don't you? Yes, I am introducing an original character into the mix. I think you will like her. Will she be integral to the plot of the story? Only time will tell.**

**Original Character (and where to find her on the web)**

**Autumn Day**, surgeon at Mercy West Hospital – **Danielle Fishel **(Topanga from Boy Meets World, The Dish. Go to IMDb search.)

"_If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough." – Mario Andretti_

_

* * *

_**Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 4**_

**Ladies, Start Your Engines**

Addison broke the embrace with Callie and stepped back to take a look at her. To Addison, few women looked better in scrubs than Callie Torres.

"Don't tell me you're gonna use the old 'I have a surgery in 10 minutes' excuse to say hi and run, are you?" Addison teased.

"Actually, it's… in twenty minutes." Callie said with a faint smile.

"Well come over here and sit down." Addison said as she led Callie over to the leather sofa in her office. "We've got to do this like speed dating. You tell me as much as you can about your life in five minutes and then we switch and I do the same."

Callie let out a slightly nervous chuckle. "Okay. What's to tell? I come to work, do surgery, go home, come back and do it all over again." She said.

"So you mean to tell me that you don't find time to fit Erica in between all that mundane crap?" Addison asked.

"Well… yeah…" Callie said in a slightly higher pitch.

"Don't tell me you've gotten shy and… demure since I was here last!" Addison said. _Please do not go into detail, Callie. I'm just being the dutiful friend here._

"I just… come on Addy. You're my ex. And I…"

"No. No, no, no, no… no. I do not need or want details." Addison said. "I just want… to know how you two are doing?"

"We're good. Really good. Great… actually. I love her, she loves me and we love each other… just one big love fest." Callie rattled off in rapid-fire fashion.

Addison nodded her head and smiled a toothless smile. "Good." Addison said. "That's good. You've got good taste."

"I've always…" Callie started before thinking better of her train of thought, but then realizing that it was too late to retract. "… had good taste in… women." She said with a nod to the fact that Addison was her first woman.

That comment was left in the air for a moment to thicken the tension that Addison tried to diffuse with her chipper demeanor. But Addison did her best not to be thrown off her game.

"And you are now two for two." Addison said, mentally high-fiving herself for the nice comeback.

"How do you know it's two for two? There could have been others between you and Erica!" Callie said. "There weren't. But there could have been. Then my record would have still been flawless, just like me." She teased causing Addison to laugh.

"I see that the hubris in this place is starting to rub off on you." Addison quipped.

"These are some of the most selfless, giving people in this hospital." Callie said in a sincere yet sarcastic tone.

"Cal, Meredith Grey, Cristina Yang, Izzie Stevens and Mark Sloan are running around this hospital. Are you sure you want to stand by that statement?" Addison said.

"I said some… not all!" Callie joked, causing them to both laugh.

"How about a friendly drink after work… for three, of course." Addison said, careful not to look like she was excluding Erica or going on a fishing expedition for Callie's attention.

"Oh, Addy, I'm sorry. Erica and I have plans tonight. We're going to see a play at the Theatre Off Jackson. Picnic by William Inge." Callie said.

"I read that book. Saw the play in New York. You'll love it." Addison said. "Maybe tomorrow night then?"

"Sure. I'll… catch up to you." Callie said as she glanced at her watch. "I better go get scrubbed up. Multiple compound fractures after a hiking accident. Ouch."

"Come find me later." Addison said as they stood up and looked at each other awkwardly.

"Welcome back home." Callie said with awkward warmth as she opened her arms to embrace Addison.

"It's good to be back." Addison said as she allowed herself for the briefest of moments to melt into the embrace. Just as she was starting to settle in, Callie, almost as if she sensed it, pulled away.

"See ya." Callie said softly as she turned to leave the office.

Addison turned and walked back to her desk and flopped down in her leather chair and let out an exaggerated sigh. "I have got to stop doing this to myself." She said out loud to herself as she closed her eyes.

"I don't know why you keep coming back either."

Addison opened her eyes and looked at the figure standing at the door. "Miranda." Addison said with a big smile as she stood up to walk over and greet Seattle Grace's chief resident.

As Bailey embraced Addison she spoke. "Well they gave you an office with a nameplate outside the door, so I guess you're stickin' around for a while." Bailey said as she broke the embrace.

"I am. How's Tucker?" Addison asked of Bailey's infant son as they walked over to Addison's desk.

"A handful. I wish he'd skip from two to twenty-two so I won't have to deal with the teenage years." Bailey said as she sat down in Addison's guest chair.

"You don't mean that." Addison said chuckling, taking her seat.

"I know I don't." Bailey said with a laugh of her own before slowly morphing to a touchier subject. "So… Addison, you're not jumpin' back into the fryin' pan, are you?"

"What are you talking about?" Addison asked.

"I saw Callie leave here just now." Bailey said.

"Sure you did. She's my best friend." Addison said.

"Don't you think you're understating her value to you just a little bit?" Bailey asked.

"Excuse me?" Addison said.

"Just because I don't run around gossiping to any and everybody who will listen doesn't mean I don't know what goes on in this hospital." Bailey said. "That woman saw you this morning and had a look on her face like I do when Morris Chestnut comes on the screen. And I seem to remember a few exchanges that I witnessed that were slightly more than just 'best friendly' if you catch my drift." Addison's mouth contorted into a near-scoff before Bailey cut her off. "And before you say anything, nobody else knows. If they did, I would have heard about it a long time ago."

Addison paused to think about her words before realizing that Miranda Bailey would see through any attempt at a lie. "Callie and I dated for about a year." Addison admitted.

"Thank you. Now we can have a productive conversation about why you are back in this hospital when you had the sun, surf and sand down in Los Angeles." Bailey said. "Why are you here?"

"Seattle Grace is the preeminent teaching hospital in…" Addison started.

"Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit, bull… shit." Bailey scoffed. "I want you to repeat after me. I came back here to steal Callie Torres away from Erica Hahn. Yes, I know about them too. Nobody told me, I have eyes. Now say it."

"Miranda!"

"Say it before I take a ten blade and cut it out of you." Bailey said. "I came back here to steal Callie Torres away from Erica Hahn."

"I came back here to steal Callie Torres away from Erica Hahn." Addison said flatly.

"There. Don't you feel better?" Bailey said.

"No. Now I feel like an ass saying out loud." Addison said.

"That's my point." Bailey said. "Addison, you are one of the most talented, brilliant surgeons I've ever met but when it comes to relationships, you've got more crap in your head than Tucker has in his diaper. I am saying this to you not just as your friend but as chief resident of this hospital. We have just had a major reduction in the amount of drama in this place now that… Derek and Meredith are playing house, George and Lexie are doing their thing and Alex and Izzie have finally decided to grow up. So please, if you love me as your friend and as your colleague, please don't come up in here starting any more love triangle drama crap." Bailey looked at the look on Addison's face and knew that her plea was falling on the deaf ears of a woman that was powerless to stop the feelings inside her. "But you're gonna do it anyway."

Addison nodded her head. "It will kill me if I don't try." She said softly.

"Addison! Go… get yourself a woman, a dog, a pet guppy, read a Harlequin novel or ten, just… save yourself the hurt and pain of chasing after another rainbow!" Bailey exclaimed in a half-whisper. Addison just gave her a forlorn look. Bailey threw her hands up and stood up. "All right. Do what you wanna do. Just do me a favor. Keep my other residents out of it. The last thing they need is, the last thing I need is another episode of The Young and the Witless."

"Trust me Miranda, I do not want them all up in my Kool-Aid." Addison said.

Bailey looked at Addison with a quizzical look on her face. "Your best friend in L.A. is black, isn't she?" Bailey asked.

"How did you know?" Addison asked.

"It wasn't hard. 'All up in my Kool-Aid' kinda gave it away." Bailey said.

"Am I not allowed to…"

"No! No. You're fine. I just… wasn't expecting that. That's all." Bailey said with an amused smile.

"There's more where that came from." Addison said as Bailey started walking toward the door.

"When… I need a good laugh, I promise that you can share them with me." Bailey said.

"See you around!" Addison called out to Bailey as she reached the threshold of the office door.

"Bye Shaniqua!" Bailey joked with a laugh, using a stereotypical black urban name.

Addison sank down in her chair even further and let out another loud sigh. "Here we go again."

**Monday, May 5, 2008 – 5:30 pm – Doctor's locker room**

With both Callie and Erica in surgeries for the majority of the day, outside the doctor's locker room was the first time they had seen each other since early that morning. Meeting at an intersection down the hallway from the locker room door, the two women talked as they walked.

"Hey. How was surgery?" Callie asked.

"Bloody… but successful." Erica replied. "Nobody died on my watch today so it was a good day. How about you?"

"The same. I reattached a kneecap, repaired a couple of MCL's and reconstructed an ACL. All in all a good day." Callie said.

"I know you know that Addison's back." Erica said.

"Yeah. Yeah. I… went to see her… in her office… this afternoon." Callie said hesitantly.

Erica chuckled softly. "You don't have to say it like I'm gonna hit you. I'm not mad. She's your friend."

"She's also…" Callie lowered her voice to a whisper. "She's also my ex-girlfriend."

"Emphasis on the ex. Unless you have designs on getting back with her, I am not worried in the least." Erica said confidently. "I have more than enough inside this lab coat to keep you occupied." Erica then paused just outside the locker room door. "Wait a minute. You said 'her office'. Why does she get an office and I don't?"

Callie smirked. "See, I knew you were jealous."

"Professionally, hell yes!" Erica said. "Personally…" Erica dropped her voice into a whisper as she placed her hand on the door handle. "… I'm the one wearing your underwear today." With that she left Callie standing at the door with her mouth open as she opened the door and stepped inside. When Callie did cross the threshold, she heard Izzie and Alex having a disagreement over which one of them would be assigned to Addison's service.

"Of course she is going to pick me. I was the best intern she had." Izzie announced.

"You are so full of crap. You know that I ran circles around you when I was assigned to her. Face it Izzie. I'm her man." Alex said.

"Just because you sucked face with her once doesn't give you an inside track on being on her service." Izzie shot back. Izzie's statement made Callie and Erica's going home preparations come to a screeching halt.

"Excuse me?" Erica said.

"You did what?" Callie chimed in.

Alex turned to look at them with a look of puzzlement as to what the big deal was.

"We kissed once in the heat of a moment. What's the big deal? Everybody around here has either kissed or slept with just about everybody else." Alex said. "Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you two weren't playing lickety-split." Izzie immediately slapped Alex's arm as hard as she could.

"ALEX!" Izzie exclaimed.

"Be lucky I'm in a good mood, Doctor Karev or I'd file a sexual harassment claim." Erica said with a frost to her voice.

"Be lucky I'm in a good mood, Doctor Karev or I'd kick your ass." Callie said with equal frost in her voice.

"Jeez, it was just a joke." Alex said as he stood up and slammed his locker. "You chicks are way too sensitive." He scoffed as he headed for the exit.

"I don't know why I sleep with him." Izzie huffed out loud to no one in particular.

Erica stunned both women in her presence with her response. "Good dick is good dick." Erica then shifted her eyes to Callie who for the second time that evening had been rendered speechless by her clandestine girlfriend. "Right, Callie?"

Callie looked at Izzie with a bewildered look that matched Izzie's as she pointed back at Erica. "What she said." Callie said. Izzie let out a single incredulous chortle before standing up, closing her locker and leaving the locker room. When Izzie finally departed, Callie burst into laughter. "Good dick is good dick? Are you serious?"

"What? You said it! Am I not allowed to say it? I've had good dick before!" Erica exclaimed.

"I… don't know what I'm gonna do with you." Callie said.

"I do. Get your stuff so we can get out of here and see this play. I can't wait. I heard it's really good." Erica said.

"Addison said she saw it in New York and it was great." Callie offered. At that moment, the name Addison struck an odd chord, the sound of which coming off of Callie's lips didn't resonate quite right with Erica.

"Really?" Erica asked in a somewhat flat tone. "Well… let's go… judge for ourselves. Shall we?"

"I shouldn't have mentioned…" Callie started.

"No. We're not going to start that. She is your friend and you absolutely should have mentioned it. I'm fine. We have no problems. I like Addison. I told you that." Erica said.

Callie breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. I'm glad to hear that." Callie said as she picked up her bag and turned to head to the door. "Cause we're meeting her for drinks after work tomorrow."

As Erica watched Callie walk to the door, she had a hollow feeling inside her that she quickly shook off. _This is ridiculous. I refuse to even entertain any of this foolishness. Callie is mine and that is the end of the story. _Erica thought to herself.

"The more drunk women, the merrier. That's what I always say." Erica said as she followed Callie to the door.

**Monday, May 5, 2008 – 8:15 pm – Joe's Bar**

Addison walked into Joe's Bar for the first time in over two years. She wanted a drink to unwind before she went home and she couldn't think of a better place to have one.

"Dr. Montgomery!" Joe exclaimed from behind the bar. He stepped out and met Addison for a hug.

"Joe. How are you?" Addison said warmly as she embraced him. Joe broke the embrace and smiled.

"I'm doing great. Business is great." Joe said.

"How's Walter? And how's the baby?" Addison asked of Joe's partner and their adopted child.

"Doing fine. And you know I have a ton of pictures." Joe said.

"Of the baby? Great. Of Walter? As long as they're not from your private collection, then okay." Addison joked.

"You know about that?" Joe teased causing Addison to laugh. "Have a seat. What can I get you?" He said as he went around to the other side of the bar. Addison sat on a stool at the corner of the bar.

"I would actually like a beer. Whatever you have on tap." Addison said.

"I'll need to see some ID please." Joe joked.

Addison chuckled. "You… are a wonderful man." She said with a smile.

"One beer coming up." Joe said as he turned to get Addison's beer.

As Addison waited for Joe to bring back her beer, another woman stepped up to the bar. From Addison's vantage point at the bar, she could take in the woman from head to toe. The woman appeared to be in her late twenties or early thirties. From her profile, she appeared to have round rosy cheeks. She had a luxurious mane of chestnut brown hair. She appeared to be approximately 5 feet 5 inches in her ankle strap heels, so Addison figured that she was actually around 5 foot 1 or 5 feet 2 inches in height. The dress that she wore was a brown long sleeve, off the shoulder micro-mini that was a good six inches above the knee, showing off her killer legs and the rest of her killer figure. As if on cue, she turned her head in Addison's direction. She had brilliant blue-green eyes and one of the biggest megawatt smiles that Addison had seen in a while. After the smile of acknowledgement, the woman turned to face the bar. Addison mentally made a note of the attractive little hottie and patiently awaited her beer.

Joe came back over and sat a frosted mug of beer in front of her. "Here you go." Joe said.

"Where is everybody tonight?" Addison said, noting that all of Seattle Grace regulars were absent.

"I don't know. I guess everybody has hot dates tonight or something." Joe said. "Excuse me for a second." Joe slid down to where the woman that Addison saw was sitting.

"_Shot of Jack, please." _Addison heard the woman say. Joe told her he'd be right back and set off to get another bottle of Jack Daniels from the back.

"You don't look like somebody that would drink the hard stuff." Addison said to the woman in an attempt at being friendly.

The woman looked at Addison and then at the beer she was cradling. "You don't look like somebody that would be drinking draft beer." She said.

"I'm kinda white wined out." Addison said. "That's all my best friend in L.A. drinks."

"Well, my best friend is a beer and pretzels kind of gal." The woman said. "She's meeting me here and we are gonna get wasted."

"Sounds like my kind of party." Addison joked.

"There's always enough alcohol for one more…" The woman said, leaving a space for Addison to introduce herself.

"Addison. Addy. Hi." Addison said.

The woman stood up and took a step toward her and extended her hand. "Autumn. Nice to meet you. May I?" She motioned to the empty stool at the corner of the bar just to Addison's right.

"Please." Addison gestured with her hand to the stool. Autumn sat down and flashed a toothless smile. "Well you definitely don't have on a get-wasted-with-my-best-friend dress on."

Autumn chuckled. "Oh. Today is my birthday and my friend is taking me out to dinner after we leave here."

"Well, Happy birthday to you. Ah, to be twenty-one again." Addison said.

"Twenty-one. I wish. I feel like I'm forty, I'm so tired. But, it's good to get out of scrubs every now and then." Autumn said.

"Oh, you work at the hospital?" Addison asked.

"At **a** hospital. But not Seattle Grace. I'm a resident over at Mercy West." Autumn said.

"Ewww. The enemy." Addison joked with a laugh. Autumn laughed as well.

"So I take it that you work at Seattle Grace?" Autumn asked.

"Today was my first day back. I'm the head of Neo-natal surgery." Addison said.

When Addison said that, Autumn's face contorted into a look of disbelief. "Hold on a second. Addison. As in Addison Forbes Montgomery?" Autumn asked.

"I see my reputation precedes me." Addison said.

"No. You don't understand. I am pretty much a disciple of your surgical techniques. I obsessed over your cases in med school." Autumn said.

"So you're a surgeon." Addison said.

"Second-year resident, OB/GYN." Autumn said. "I want to sit down and talk to you for days."

Addison laughed. "As flattering as that is, I don't think we'd get any work done at our hospitals."

"Why don't you join my friend and me for a drink? She should be here any minute. She called me before I came in. Her shift just ended." Autumn said.

"I really don't want to be a third wheel." Addison said.

"It's okay, really. Lexie will be thrilled." Autumn said.

"Lexie. Lexie. Where do I know that name from?" Addison attempted to recall the name from her memory banks.

"Oh. You probably know her half-sister, Meredith. She's a surgeon at Seattle Grace too." Autumn said.

"Lexie Grey. Callie told me Meredith's sister was an intern." Addison said out loud to herself.

"And speak of the devil!" Autumn said with enthusiasm as Lexie walked through the door with a smile on her face and a gift bag in hand. Lexie spotted Autumn and made her way over.

"Happy birthday, Autumn Day!" Lexie gushed as she embraced Autumn.

"Your last name is Day?" Addison asked incredulously, the irony of the woman's name being a seasonal description not lost on her.

"My parents love the fall. They said there is nothing more beautiful than an autumn day and… well… there you have it." Autumn said. "Autumn is my middle name. My first name is actually Christina. But Autumn is a great conversation starter."

"Autumn." Lexie said in a knowing way. "Who's your friend?"

"Lex, will you chill?" Autumn said. "Lexie, this is Addison Montgomery. Addison, Lexie Grey."

"Wait. THE Addison Montgomery?" Lexie exclaimed. "You are the buzz of the hospital today! It's so nice to meet you!" Lexie said beaming.

_Wow! She doesn't appear to be anything like Meredith… at first glance anyway. _Addison thought. "Nice to meet you as well. Autumn was just reminding me that you were Meredith's sister."

"Half-sister." Lexie corrected. "Wow! Addison Montgomery! Well, I'd like to say that Meredith has told me all about you but, she doesn't like me very much and I'm not her biggest fan either so we don't exactly talk on a regular basis."

"You know something, Autumn? I think I will join you two for a drink." Addison said as she cocked her head to one side.

"So you two were getting to know each other?" Lexie asked as she glanced sideways at Autumn.

"I thought I told you to chill." Autumn said in a pseudo-whisper to Lexie. She then addressed Addison. "I'm sorry. She is always trying to hook me up. I told her that I can get my own women, thank you very much." She then addressed Lexie again. "I was just having a friendly conversation with a fellow OB/GYN who happens to be a very attractive woman. Now, can we please start celebrating my birthday? Addison, what's the bartender's name?"

"Joe." Addison said.

"JOE! Another shot of Jack for me and two beers for the ladies!" Autumn called out. "It's my birthday and I'll drink if I want to."

"Here here!" Lexie cheered as they made their way over to an empty table.

Addison followed the two friends over to the table and watched as they laughed and joked. She mentally raised an eyebrow when Autumn's next-to-last statement started to sink in. _"…She is always trying to hook me up. I told her that I can get my own women, thank you very much." _Addison took the young woman in from head to toe again. _"Well, she is hot. A little short but the curves make up for it. No. You are here for Callie and nobody else." _Addison's mind paused for a moment before continuing. _"But that doesn't mean I can't have… a little fun while I wait."_

The three women sat down at the small round table. Lexie was on one side with Addison and Autumn facing each other at the table. As Lexie began to talk, Autumn and Addison flashed a small toothless smile at each other that carried something else with it besides a sign of mutual, courteous acknowledgement. What it also carried was a little bit of a spark.

* * *

**There you have it, my new original character, Autumn Day, surgeon at Mercy West, friend of Lexie and possible funtime girl for Addison? And for you hardcore Grey's fans, Izzie and Alex joined the party! YAY! So what do you think about Autumn? I am interested to find out. What is going to happen next? I bet you're interested to find out. And you will in chapter 5. Come back and join me. But before you do…**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	5. Say Ahhh

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I am just borrowing them for these stories. Original characters are owned by the author of this story.**

"_All women are flirts, but some are restrained by shyness, and others by sense." - François de la Rochefoucauld_

**Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 5**_

**Say Ahhh**

Addison was no lightweight when it came to drinking. She could hold her own with the best of them if and when she had to. Tonight was not one of those nights however because the two women in her company for the evening were doing a good job of getting trashed all by themselves. They were having two drinks to every one of Addison's. While Addison was buzzed, they were bordering on being trashed. While Addison was warm and happy within her buzz, Autumn and Lexie were hot and giddy within sloppiness.

"I… am SO sorry!" Lexie said. "We… I… should not be… carrying on this way in front of you." Lexie said as she attempted to focus on the Addison in the middle of the three Addisons she saw sitting in front of her. "Please. I hope… this doesn't affect… your opinion of me… at work." Lexie said with a slur in her voice.

"You don't drink like this at work, do you?" Addison asked.

"With Doctor Sloan lurking around? HELL no!" Lexie exclaimed as Autumn laughed and wobbled in her seat. "My scrubs… would be… around my ankles before I could say myocardinal… no… myocadmium… no wait, I've got this…"

"Myocardial infarction! You… idiot!" Autumn said of the technical name for a heart attack. "See, my tongue still works." Autumn then stuck her tongue out at Lexie and laughed. She then looked at Addison and straightened up. "I look like a total ass right now, don't I?"

"You told me up front that this was your birthday and you were going to get wasted. You'd only look like an ass if you didn't." Addison said.

"Good." Autumn said. "Cause I was really hoping I had a shot with you." Autumn then reached out clumsily and patted Addison's hand.

"A shot to what?" Addison decided to play coy to draw the answer out of Autumn.

"Well… my drunk brain… is telling me to say… a shot to fuck you. But the small part of my brain… that the whiskey hasn't touched… is saying… a shot to get to know you better." Autumn said.

"Play your cards right and you'll get a shot at both… when you're sober." Addison said.

"That's not the whiskey talkin'. Autumn said. "The whiskey just lowered my inhibitions." Autumn said as she reached out and patted Addison's hand.

Addison placed her hand on top of Autumn's and smiled. "How old are you?" Addison asked.

"A lady NEVER reveals her age. Anyway… I don't care if you're… seventy. You're very hot." Autumn said. "But for the record… I'm twenty-six."

"As long as your age didn't start with a one, you were safe." Addison said.

"How old are you?" Autumn asked. "Thirty-four, thirty-five?"

"Now you're really trying to get into my pants." Addison said with a laugh. "I just turned forty."

"Well you are THE hottest forty-year old I've ever met." Autumn said seconds before her stomach flipped. "Uhh god. That wasn't good." She said as she held her stomach. "Where…"

"Down that hallway." Addison said pointing, answering her incomplete question about the whereabouts of the bathroom. Autumn stood up and made a beeline for the bathroom.

"I WIN!" Lexie thrust her hands in the air celebrating her victory over Autumn in their contest to see who could go the longest without vomiting. Lexie looked at Addison who had an amused smile on her face. "I'm sorry. I'm a little intoxicated."

"Even piss drunk, you are much better company than your half-sister." Addison said.

"You know, I tried to be her friend. I told her that I loved her and that I want to be a part of her life and she… just brushed me off." Lexie said. "She's a relationship midget."

"Little person." Addison corrected. "I think they want to be called little people."

"Well she's a relationship little person." Lexie said.

"Stick with midget. It sounds funnier." Addison said.

"So why don't you like her?" Lexie asked.

Addison looked at Lexie. _She's in the gossip mill of the Northwest and she doesn't know why I am not president of the Meredith Grey fan club. Huh. _"My married last name was Shepherd, as in Derek Shepherd."

Lexie's brain was a moment or two behind but when it caught up, her mouth flew open. "McDreamy…? You…? She…?" Lexie stammered. "That adulterous bitch!"

"Not so fast, kiddo. You can call me that too." Addison said. "Me and ol' myocardial infarction boy…"

"NO!" Lexie exclaimed.

"Yeah." Addison said. "But that's water under the bridge. I am done with all that."

"Autumn likes you." Lexie said.

"She's a nice woman." Addison said.

"No. I mean she LIKES you." Lexie said.

"Okay. Why do I feel like I'm in junior high school?" Addison said.

"That doesn't bother you?" Lexie asked.

"No. She's hot." Addison said.

"No. I mean, that doesn't bother you that she's a woman and you're a woman…" Lexie saw the look on Addison's face encouraging her to connect the dots. It took Lexie a second or two but she finally did. "… and that doesn't bother you because you are a woman that likes women now."

"This stays between you and me. There are only four people at Seattle Grace that know, okay five counting you, and I'd like to keep it that way. Okay?" Addison said.

"Who?" Lexie asked.

"Don't worry about that. Just don't say anything to anybody. Call it a bonding exercise between us." Addison said.

Lexie nodded. "Are you gonna ask her out?" She asked. Addison let out a breath she was holding. "I've known Autumn since med school. I can tell when she's got the hots for somebody. She's got the hots for you." Before Addison could answer, Autumn came back to the table holding her stomach and breathing slowly and deeply.

"My jejunum hurts." Autumn said of one of the parts of the small intestine.

"Quit being such a baby." Lexie joked.

"You okay?" Addison asked.

"I will be when you agree to have drinks with me sometime without her." Autumn said pointing at Lexie with her thumb.

"Well!" Lexie huffed in mock offense.

"Still not the whiskey talkin'?" Addison asked.

"No whiskey. Just Autumn." Autumn said.

"I'll give you my number before I drop you two off. You're in no position to drive." Addison said as she reached for her purse.

"Neither are you." Lexie said.

"My buzz wore off before Autumn left the table." Addison said.

"Before or after I talked about my drunk brain wanting to…" Autumn started.

"I guess… you'll be wondering about that when you wake up in the morning." Addison said.

"Hot, brilliant and sassy – the triple crown of sexy." Autumn said. "Come on Lex. We're getting a ride home. Good thing we have the day off, huh?

"Mmm hmm." Lexie said as she stood up.

Addison pulled out her keys and threw up her hand to wave at Joe and led the two women out of the bar. Just before reaching the door, she heard Autumn mumble to Lexie, "Nice butt." That mumble was followed by a light giggle. Addison simply glanced over her shoulder and replied. "Yours ain't so bad either." She then continued walking as Autumn and Lexie burst into laughter after being busted. Addison simply shook her head and smiled to herself as she led the women to her car for the ride back to their respective homes.

**Monday, May 5, 2008 – 11:00 pm – Erica's apartment**

Erica unlocked her front door and walked in flipping the light on with Callie right behind her.

"That was a good play. Nice job getting those tickets. Thank you." Erica said as she sat her keys down on the kitchen counter.

"Anything for my girl." Callie said.

"You want some wine?" Erica asked.

"No thanks. I'm gonna head back to my place and get some sleep. Long day tomorrow." Callie said.

"You sure you don't wanna sleep here tonight?" Erica asked.

"If I stayed here there would be very little sleep going on." Callie said with a grin.

"Now you've gotta stay." Erica said with a grin of her own.

Callie simply chuckled. "Er? Are you… sure you're okay with the whole friends-with-Addison thing?" Callie asked. "I mean, if you're not…"

"What did I tell you this afternoon? I am the one wearing your unmentionables not her. It is not unusual for someone to be friends with their ex. I've done it before. Hell, you work in the same hospital with your ex-husband and the woman he cheated on you with." Erica explained as she stepped forward and placed her hands on Callie's cheeks. "Addison and I get along. You need not worry. Okay?"

"Okay." Callie said softly.

"Are YOU okay with the whole friends-with-Addison thing?" Erica asked.

"Of course! Why wouldn't I be?" Callie asked.

"Well the woman is hotter than… the sun." Erica said. "And I can imagine that she still shivers your timbers a little."

"Shivers my timbers?" Callie asked incredulously. "Stop watching Pirates of the Caribbean."

Erica chuckled. "I'm serious!"

"I know you're serious!" Callie replied. "Look. Okay. She is still gorgeous and my brain may have flashed a couple of naughty memories through my head but that's it. She is the past and you…" Callie slipped her hands around Erica's waist. "… are my present. A present…" Callie said as she reached for Erica's belt buckle. "… that I love to unwrap."

"I thought you were going home." Erica purred.

"I can always get up early. I only live twenty minutes from here." Callie purred back. "Just promise me I can get about five hours of sleep."

"I'll try. I can't promise anything." Erica said.

"God I was hoping you'd say that." Callie said as she passionately pressed her lips to Erica's, setting off the chain reaction of events that would lead to yet another night to remember.

**Wednesday, May 7, 2008 – 8:30 am – Addison's office**

Addison was sitting at her desk going over some charts when her phone rang.

"Addison Montgomery."

"_Doctor Montgomery, this is Doctor Autumn Day from Mercy West. How are you this morning?"_

"Is this phone call being monitored or recorded for training purposes?" Addison teased.

"_I am always professional when I am addressing other surgeons in the workplace." _Autumn said.

"What did my friend Miranda say to me the other day? Oh yeah. Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit, bull… shit." Addison recalled. "Just drop the professionalism and talk to me."

"_What are you doing after work tonight?"_ Autumn asked.

"Uhh… let me guess. Does it start with, having drinks…" Addison started just as Cristina appeared at her open office door. Addison looked up and saw Cristina standing there but decided to finish her sentence. "… and end with, with you?"

"_You're good at guessing." _Autumn said. _"Meet me at Joe's at nine?"_

"How about…" Addison said before motioning to Cristina to sit down. "… another place. That's not necessarily the most private spot for doctors in this hospital to go."

"_Ooooh. I get it. You're on the down low at work." _ Autumn surmised. _"Tell you what. I'll pick a discreet place and I'll call you back."_

"Sounds like a date." Addison said. "Talk to you later."

"_Good day, Doctor Montgomery." _Autumn said with a light giggle.

Addison laughed. "Good day to you too." She said with a smile as she hung up the phone.

"Hot date, huh?" Cristina asked with a tongue-in-cheek smile.

"I didn't ask you here to discuss my social calendar." Addison said with a purposeful amount of frost in her voice.

"Of course you didn't. What can I do for you?" Cristina said as she snapped back into place.

"I would like to take of your interns and put them on my service for a week or so." Addison said.

"One of… my interns?" Cristina asked. "All due respect, Doctor Montgomery but… my interns aren't exactly the sharpest knives in the drawer."

"They're not?" Addison said. "That's funny. I thought the job of a resident was to help the attendings sharpen those dull knives into efficient surgeons that can slice through the most challenging medical situations, I mean, this is THE Seattle Grace Hospital, isn't it? The finest teaching hospital west of the Mississippi River, isn't it?"

"Yes, ma'am. Of course it is our job to sharpen the knives and this is THE Seattle Grace." Cristina responded.

"Good. Now if you would be so kind as to release Alexandra Grey to me, that would be great." Addison said as she glanced down at Lexie's personnel folder.

"Alexandra Grey?" Cristina muttered to herself, not picking up the identity despite the presence of the last name Grey. "You mean Lexie? Number three?"

"Number three?" Addison inquired.

"I can't remember all their names so I assign them numbers." Cristina said.

Addison let out an incredulous laugh. "Oh, don't you ever let me hear you refer to any doctor in this hospital by number! They may be interns but they are physicians. They graduated medical school just like we did and they were chosen to work in this hospital, just like we were. That is disrespectful… and offensive to subject them to that."

"You're absolutely right Doctor Montgomery. I'm sorry about that. That will never happen again." Cristina said.

"And stop brown-nosing. It's unbecoming and makes you look desperate." Addison added to her rebuke.

"Right. I'll… just send number three… Lexie… to you right away." Cristina said as she stood up to leave.

"Doctor Yang?" Cristina paused and turned to face Addison. "If you ever add a heart to the skill and the passion that you have… you will be unstoppable." Addison said.

Cristina cocked her head to the side. "I'll… work on that." She paused. "Thank you… Doctor Montgomery." With that, Cristina departed and left Addison to peruse Lexie's file further before she arrived.

Cristina stepped off the elevator and headed over to the nurses' station where Meredith and Izzie were standing. Just seconds before Cristina arrived, Callie walked around behind the station and sat down with a chart she was working on.

"So? Did you get your ass handed to you?" Izzie teased Cristina as she walked up.

"Shut up Barbie!" Cristina snapped.

"She DID get her ass handed to her. I knew it!" Izzie said gleefully as Meredith looked at her and gave her a dirty smirk. Meredith then turned her attention to Cristina.

"What happened?" Meredith asked.

"Well I thought she would be in a good mood. I walked up and she was on the phone making a date for drinks with somebody tonight." Cristina started. That part of Cristina's monologue got Callie's attention.

"She just came back. Man, she works fast." Meredith said.

"Maybe we'll see who it is at Joe's." Izzie said with a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"No. They're going some place more private." Cristina said. "Apparently, doctors in this hospital don't get any privacy when they go to Joe's."

"We don't." Meredith said. "We all go to Joe's all the time. We've all hooked up in and around Joe's. I met Derek at Joe's. Lexie met Derek at Joe's." Meredith said, her voice turning more sinister when she mentioned Lexie. "Everybody sees everything at Joe's."

"Yeah well, whoever Montgomery's meeting must really have her going because she couldn't stop grinning on the phone." Cristina said. Callie kept her head down, scribbling notes in her chart but never took her attention away from the conversation less than ten feet from her. With each uttered word, Callie felt her irritation level with the gossip rise to a new height.

"You know, after the whole thing with Derek and Meredith and Sloan coming back, she kind of went stealth as far as dating." Izzie said. "Nobody heard or saw anything about her. Huh. I wonder who the mystery guy is. He's probably tall and hunky; a big, strapping, muscular mountain of a man."

"Nah. She has intellectual guy written all over her, like a lawyer or a college professor." Cristina guessed.

"He's probably married and has two kids and lives in Medina." Meredith said of the wealthy suburb east of Seattle across Lake Washington. Just as Meredith finished her sentence, Callie had reached her boiling point.

"You know why nobody heard or saw anything about Addison's personal life?" Callie said with bite in her voice as the three women turned to face her. Callie then stood up with a scowl on her face that mirrored the anger she felt inside. "Because of shit like this; the three of you standing here in your little cabal of fear, self-loathing and general nosiness. You ever notice that everybody in this hospital that has never lived in the house with you doesn't share anything with you? That's because they know you'll talk. You stand around here or sit in the cafeteria or sit around at Joe's and cackle like a bunch of fucking hens, bitching and moaning about the state of your pathetic personal lives while you pass judgment on everybody else. Well you know what? You all need to grow the fuck up. Neither Addison nor anybody else in this hospital has to tell you shit! Concentrate on your jobs and save some lives and MAYBE, just maybe, you'll end up better people instead of the shrew-like harpies you are." Callie vented before she snatched her chart off of the counter beside her. She began to stalk away but not before muttering under her breath loud enough for Meredith, Izzie and Cristina to hear her. "I swear. Now I know why Bailey and the Chief are so pissed all the time." After delivering that last zinger, Callie stalked away from the desk for parts unknown.

The three women stood in silence for a moment, each wondering what they did do deserve the tongue lashing they had just received from the number two resident in the hospital.

"Well I didn't see that coming." Izzie said.

"I think it was something we said." Cristina added.

"I think it was everything we said." Meredith joined in.

"I guess she won't be requesting us on her service anytime soon." Izzie said.

"You slept with her husband. She's never requesting you." Cristina spat.

"Why are you such a bitch?" Izzie shot back.

"It gives me my edge." Cristina replied. "Every second you smile is a second closer that I am to another surgery."

"God, you are twisted!" Izzie said in exasperation.

"Not as dark and twisty as Meredith but I'm sufficiently warped." Cristina joked.

"I'm not dark anymore." Meredith said. "Twisty maybe. But not dark."

Cristina glanced down the hallway in the direction that Callie went. "No. I think Callie has the market on dark cornered right now."

Callie made a beeline for the on-call room at the end of the hallway and flung the door open, fully expecting it to be empty as she muttered out loud.

"I am so sick of those gossiping bitches." Callie fumed as she tossed her chart on the bed in front of her and flopped down. "I'd like to suture their lips shut."

"Not that I care, but what did Winkin, Blinkin and Nod do this time?" Callie looked up and to her right and noticed Doctor Bailey stretched out on the top bunk with her arm draped over her eyes.

"What?" Callie asked.

"There are only three people I can think of that you would call 'gossiping bitches' that would piss you off that bad. So what did Doctors Stevens, Grey and Yang do this time?" Bailey said, not moving her arm from her eyes. "And since you woke me up, it better be good."

"Every time I turn around, they are yapping about somebody's love life. If it's not one of theirs, it's one of the nurses, if it's not one of the nurses, it's one of the attendings." Callie continued her subdued rant. "They need to shut the fuck up and do some work."

"Whoa!" Bailey said with reserved enthusiasm as she stretched and slowly sat up in the bunk. "Dropping the f-bomb means they hit a nerve. What did they say about you?"

"They didn't say anything about me." Callie said. "They were talking about Addison. But the point is they should mind their own business."

"Hold on Jerry Maguire. You had me at Addison." Bailey said. "Go lock the door and then come back over here."

"You're… not trying to come on to me… are you?" Callie asked hesitantly.

"You may be tall, dark and good looking, but you're missing a certain Y chromosome I need in my copulating partners. Now lock the door and come sit down." Bailey said. Callie walked over to the door and locked it, and then obediently came back over to sit on the bunk in front of Bailey. "This conversation is just between you and me and is to be shared with no one. Understood?"

"Okay, you're freakin' me out a little bit." Callie said.

"Good. Then I haven't lost my touch." Bailey said. "Now… do you know what reputation I have in this hospital, Callie?"

"A no-nonsense, kickass, tough-as-nails surgeon that they used to call The Nazi." Callie said.

"Besides that." Bailey said.

"A woman that calls her… vagina a va-jay-jay?" Callie guessed chuckling. Bailey cocked her head to the side and gave Callie a "you're a smart-ass" deadpan. "I'm sorry." Callie said snickering. "I couldn't resist."

"No. The other reputation I have is that I know everything that goes on in this hospital. Do you know what that means?" Bailey asked. "And if you say it means I'm nosy, I swear I will hit you."

"Well tell me so I don't get hit." Callie countered.

"It means that if you want the secret of your former tête-à-tête with Addison and your current one with Erica to remain a secret, you will not blow up when ABC, NBC and CBS out there start running off at the mouth about people's love lives." Bailey said.

"You… knew? You know?" Callie asked.

"You're discreet, but I see what they don't." Bailey said. "Look. It appears that you have a good friendship with Erica and you don't want to blow it. The worst thing you could do is to start having feelings for Addison… again. That is a train you need to get out of the way of." Callie looked at Bailey in silence. "And I take it by your silence that I'm right in my diagnosis of the problem."

"I love Erica." Callie said.

"And you have some leftover feelings for Addison." Bailey said. "Sort them out in the right way, before they come out in the wrong way."

"And they don't know?" Callie said.

"You wanna go ask them?" Bailey asked. "I didn't think so. They don't. But they will if you… spazz out when they talk about Addison, or Erica, or you. Mind your business, do your job and act professional. Don't bring your personal business into the workplace and it will not follow you." Just as Bailey finished her sentence, the door knob was jiggled, followed by a knock. _"Hey! Can't a guy get a few minutes of sleep in this place?" _Callie was about to stand up and open the door for Mark when Bailey put her finger up. "I'll… get this one." She walked over to the door and unlocked it and eased the door open. "Can I help you?"

"Doctor Bailey, why the need for privacy? Surely you know that the on-call room is no place for extracurricular activities." Mark said. He then glanced past her and saw Callie sitting on the bed. "Unless I'm involved. Care to step back inside and discuss it with Doctor Torres and me?"

"Have you lost your natural mind?" Bailey scoffed. "Contrary to what you may think, Doctor McSteamy, not every woman in this hospital wants you and besides, you couldn't handle me if you tried. I'd wear your ass out. You hear me? WEAR… IT… OUT." Mark let out a single chuckle.

"We were just having a private conversation." Callie said. "Something that seems to be impossible in this place." She said as she stood up and walked toward the door. "Thanks Miranda. I'll… take what you said under advisement." Callie walked past Bailey and Mark at the threshold and out into the hallway leaving the other two standing in the doorway.

"Well…" Mark looked down at Bailey. "Just the two of us. Whaddya say? Aren't you curious?"

"You need Jesus. Bad." Bailey said before she stepped out into the hallway and started on her path to the clinic.

Mark turned around. "I'll take that as a maybe!" He called out to Bailey. He then laughed to himself. "Messing with her will be fun."

**Chapter five has come to a close. I hope you are enjoying my story so far. Chapter six will be coming around the bend soon. But I need you to do me one tiny little favor…**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	6. The Autumnal Equinox

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I am just borrowing them for these stories. Original characters are owned by the author of this story.**

**Author's Note: In order to make my story fit along with some of the canon of the show, I have manipulated the timeline and changed the date of a flashback event in this chapter.**

**Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 6**_

**The Autumnal Equinox  
**

**Wednesday, May 7, 2008 – 9:10 pm – The Georgian restaurant – The Fairmont Olympic Hotel**

Addison checked her watch for the third time in the last fifteen minutes. Autumn was running late and had yet to call. Addison didn't know why she was nervous. Autumn was not the first woman that she had dated since Callie. Autumn was, however, the first woman that she had dated since Callie **in Seattle**. Addison didn't have a particular type of woman. She had dated Callie, a statuesque, plus-sized Latina. She had dated Raisha, a petite, raven-haired Israeli-American woman in L.A. Then there was the stunningly attractive African-American woman that she saw at a bar in West Hollywood that she never got the chance to talk to. Addison didn't have a particular type of woman, indeed, she liked women of all shapes, sizes and ethnic backgrounds. And then, there was Autumn.

Autumn was fourteen years younger than Addison but had a certain spark in her eyes to let Addison know that she would be an intriguing person to get to know. She certainly would not be intriguing enough to take her mind completely off of Callie, but she would be intriguing enough to keep her from going batty as she tried to figure out what her next move with the gorgeous orthopedic surgeon would be.

Addison was about to check her watch again when her cell phone rang. She reached inside her purse to answer the phone and saw her friend Naomi's face on her caller ID.

"You have impeccable timing." Addison deadpanned.

"_And good evening to you too." _Naomi said. _"Where are you? I tried your house and you're not home."_

"I am in a fancy restaurant waiting for my date to arrive." Addison said.

"_You snatched up Callie that fast? Damn, you're good!" _Naomi exclaimed.

"It's not Callie." Addison said. "It's a surgeon from Mercy West that I met at a bar. And get this. She's friends with Meredith Grey's sister."

"_You just love these complex relationship webs. Don't you?"_ Naomi said.

"Excuse me! But I'm not the one running a business with my EX-husband!" Addison shot back.

"_Yeah, but I don't want him!" _ Naomi said.

Addison dropped her voice. "You mean to tell me that if that fine, chocolate man came over to your house…"

"_Hold on there… girlfriend." _Naomi stopped Addison in her tracks. _ "Let's keep your little Mandingo fantasy out of the conversation."_

"Mandin… I am just saying…" Addison looked up and spotted Autumn walk into the restaurant and make her way to the table. "… that my date is here. I'll talk to you later."

"_Call me with all the details." _Naomi said.

"All… the details?" Addison asked knowingly.

"_Okay, no details. Just call me tomorrow."_

"Bye." Addison said with a smile before hanging up the phone just before Autumn reached the table.

"I am so sorry I'm late." Autumn said. "My last surgery took longer than expected."

"That's… okay." Addison said with an air of hesitation as she took in Autumn's appearance. "You look amazing."

"Lexie calls this my 'woman-catching' outfit." Autumn said with a light giggle as she sat down.

"Looking to catch a woman, are we?" Addison asked coyly.

"A goddess actually, but my goddess-catching dress is in the cleaners." Autumn joked.

"Would a dress like that even be legal?" Addison asked.

"Play your cards right and one day you might find out." Autumn said, earning herself a smile from Addison. "So Lexie tells me that you came back here from L.A. Why in God's name would you leave sunny Los Angeles for Seattle?"

Addison let out a chuckle. "You believe in digging right in, huh?" Addison quipped. "Well… I missed Seattle. I missed Seattle Grace. I missed my friend."

"Friend. Singular tense. One friend. Must be a pretty special friend." Autumn said.

"You could say that. Believe it or not, I don't make friends easily." Addison said.

"I find that hard to believe." Autumn said.

"It's true. I have two friend friends. Naomi and Callie." Addison said.

"So which one did you come back for?" Autumn asked.

"The one that's not in L.A." Addison said.

"Ahh. Unrequited love. I see." Autumn surmised.

"Oh, it was requited… quite well in fact." Addison said. "No. We're just friends… now. So what about you and Lexie? Any unrequited… requitedness there?"

"Lex Luthor? No." Autumn said, using her occasional nickname for Lexie. "She is like a sister to me… okay a really hot second cousin that I thought about once or twice but now, really a sister." Addison laughed. "So when I read your biography online, you were married… to a man. What happened?"

"Life… happened. That's what happened." Addison said. "McDreamy found McNutty and I got McFucked."

"McWhat?" Autumn asked incredulously.

"Too long a story for dinner. Sorry." Addison said just before the waiter came over to the table to take their drink orders. Just as the waiter left the table, Addison looked over at the maitre d' stand and allowed her mouth to fall wide open. "I'll be McDamned." Standing at the podium, waiting to be seated, were none other than Erica Hahn and Callie Torres.

As they turned the corner to come into the restaurant, Callie was the first of the two to glimpse Addison. Callie's eyes shifted quickly to Addison's dinner companion and then back to Addison.

"So Cal, what I was thinking was…" Erica's thought was interrupted by the sight of Addison sitting in front of her. Before any further awkwardness could ensue, Addison spoke up.

"I come out here to get away from Seattle Grace surgeons but you manage to find me anyway!" Addison joked with a beaming smile as she stood up to embrace them.

"You and me both." Erica muttered under her breath as Addison hugged Callie. "You come here often?" Erica asked Addison.

"No. This is my first time here." Addison said before glancing at Autumn. "Oh. Erica, Callie, this is Doctor Autumn Day from Mercy West. Autumn, this is Doctor Erica Hahn and Doctor Callie Torres."

Autumn extended her hand to shake Callie and Erica's. "I am so going to request a transfer to Seattle Grace." Autumn joked. "On second thought, I better not. I'd never get any work done." The other three women let out chuckles before Autumn spoke again. "Would you two… like to join us?"

"No. No… thank you." Callie said. "We're… gonna let you enjoy your dinner."

"Thank you though." Erica said. "That was nice of you."

"Maybe… another time then." Addison said as she looked at Callie.

Callie flashed a quick smile. "Definitely." Callie said before grabbing Erica's hand. "Come on, Er. Nice to meet you… Autumn."

"You too." Autumn said before joining Addison in watching Erica and Callie sit down several tables away from them. Without looking at Addison, Autumn spoke. "So how long did you two see each other?"

"I have got to work on my subtlety." Addison said.

"Yeah, you do." Autumn said. "How long?"

"A year." Addison said.

"And you still want her and you can't have her because of Blondie. That's why you came back to Seattle." Autumn deadpanned.

"Well. I guess I have effectively killed our date." Addison said.

"Are you kidding me?" Autumn said. "I am out on a date with a smokin' hot redhead that, now that I know she wants somebody else, I can just use for her body."

Addison cracked up laughing. "Anybody ever tell you how funny you are?" Addison asked.

Autumn smiled a sexy smirk. "Yeah. They've also told me how deadly serious I can be when I want something bad enough." Autumn said in a husky voice that was not lost on Addison. When Addison fixed her eyes on the younger woman, she saw the look of an approaching storm reflected in her eyes. "Let's get out of here." Autumn said in a low piercing voice that until that moment, Addison had not heard from her.

Addison took a moment to study Autumn before raising her hand to get their waiter's attention. Addison flashed on final glance at Autumn before looking at the waiter. "Check, please."

**Wednesday, May 7, 2008 – 10:10 pm – Addison's apartment**

The eight-inch height advantage that Addison enjoyed over Autumn didn't matter at the moment they spilled onto Addison's bed, frantically removing every article of clothing that separated their heated bodies from one another.

"You are… so damned tall." Autumn whispered in between kisses.

"Not a problem. Is it?" Addison breathlessly asked.

"No. More to play with." Autumn purred. "I'm not… too short for you… am I?"

"Does this feel like you're too short?" Addison said just before touching Autumn's clit with her finger.

Autumn gasped. "Hell no." She uttered. "I feel tall."

"Wanna feel taller?" Addison asked. Autumn nodded her head quickly before Addison slowly slid a long, slender digit inside Autumn for the first time causing her to cry out. Addison placed several short wet kisses on Autumn's lips before she closed her eyes and continued to finger the brown-haired beauty. As Autumn's heavy breathing and whimpers wafted into her ears, one particular utterance send Addison's mind traveling back to a time in the not so distant past.

"Oh god Addison… yes."

**FLASHBACK – Monday, April 25, 2005**

Callie sat in her car and wept bitterly. George had just confirmed her worst fears… he had slept with Izzie. She spent weeks on pins and needles, mentally chewing on the possibility that the sanctity of their marriage had been compromised. Even though she received confirmation of something that she already knew in her heart to be true, it still hurt her to her core.

Callie cranked up her car and threw it into gear, tires screeching as she sped off to destinations unknown. She cried, cursed and banged her hand on the door and the dashboard as she drove. She was distraught. She was angry. For the briefest of moments, the thought of finding Isobel Stevens and beating the hell out of her crossed her mind, but she was afraid that she would kill her. So Callie went to find the only person that she could stand to be near at that moment. Soon she was turning down Addison's street.

"I'll be there… with a love that will shelter you…" Addison sang the Four Tops hit song as she watched TV in her apartment. "I'll be there… with a love that will see you through…" She was about to crank up another verse when a frantic knocking on her door interrupted her. "Hang on a sec!" The knocking didn't stop. "I said hang on!" Addison said as she scrambled to her feet and walked over to the door and heard muffled crying. She peeked through the peep hole. "Callie?" Addison threw the door open and looked into the face of the broken-hearted woman. "Cal, what happened?" Addison said as she pulled Callie into the apartment. Her kindness only made Callie weep that much harder. "Callie?" At that point Callie simply dropped her head on Addison's chest and continued to cry. "Cal, sweetie?" Addison's concern grew exponentially with each sob. Callie managed to eke out only two words but those two words told Addison everything she needed to know.

"George… Izzie…" Callie could speak no more as another torrent of sobs overwhelmed her.

"C'mere." Addison said simply as she led Callie over to the sofa and sat down with her, rocking the distraught surgeon in her arms as she wept. Ten minutes passed before the first significant break in Callie's tears came. When the break came, it brought a strong storm front with it.

"I'm gonna kill her." Callie said in an ominous whisper. "That bitch is gonna wish she never messed with him."

"You're not going to kill her." Addison said calmly.

"Watch me." Callie said as she started to dry her tears. "I know which bones are the most fragile. I will put her through excruciating pain."

"What about George?" Addison asked.

"Fuck that Lilliputian grimalkin." Callie spat.

"A grimalkin… is an evil-looking she-cat." Addison said with confusion as to why Callie would call George that.

"That's right." Callie said defiantly. "He's a pussy." Callie's flash of eerily calm anger subsided and left another bout of tearful angst in its wake. "I am so sick of getting fucked over! High school, college, med school… every stop I make, somebody ends up… ripping my heart out and I'm sick of it!" Callie fumed before trying to collect herself. "You got any liquor?" She said as she stood up and headed over to the kitchen. "The stronger the better." Addison followed Callie into the kitchen. "I don't suppose you've got any moonshine, do you?"

"No. Uncle Jed broke down his still and hauled it away two days ago." Addison said as Callie found a bottle of vodka, opened it and took a swig to the head. "Cal, I don't think…"

Callie snatched the bottle away from her face and wheeled around on Addison. "I just found out that my mealy-mouthed husband stuck his little mealy-mouthed penis inside that… blonde… I don't even have a good put down for her! But all I know is that in order for me to deal with that right now, I have to get shit-faced and I know that you won't let me do anything monumentally stupid while I'm drunk so will you PLEASE let me get fucked up? PLEASE!" Callie pleaded.

Addison looked at Callie for a moment. "Here." Addison said as she took the vodka bottle out of Callie's hand and screwed the top back on before opening the freezer and pulling out a new, ice-cold bottle. "If you're gonna get trashed, do it with the good stuff."

"I knew there was a reason I liked you." Callie said as she took the bottle and headed back over to the sofa, flopping down. An hour later, Callie and Addison were sufficiently drunk, engaged in a discussion over how they could torture their enemies.

"I know, I know, I know!" Addison said. "I can shave all of Meredith's hair off with a set of O.R. clippers!" Addison said, causing Callie to giggle almost uncontrollably. Addison began laughing at her next joke before she told it. "Since she doesn't have any tits, everybody will think she's a twelve year old boy!" Addison's head fell into Callie's lap as she laughed hysterically. Callie let out a loud laugh as her head fell back. She then began patting Addison's head to get her attention.

"Hey! Hey! I could… I could get some methylene blue…" Callie said before laughing to herself again. "… put it in Izzie's drink… and turn her pee blue!"

Addison cracked up. "My God Izzie! Have you been drinking Smurfs?" Addison joked. Callie howled in laughter as Addison laughed so hard that no sound would come out.

"Oh! I got it! I got it!" Callie exclaimed. "We can handcuff Meredith and Izzie back-to-back and then sprinkle itching powder all over them!" Addison exploded in laughter causing Callie to laugh again. "We could watch them squirm around… rubbing up on corners of walls and shit… trying to scratch themselves!" With that, both women lost it, devolving into a hysterical laughing fit that lasted for more than a minute.

Addison slowly sat up as their laughter began to subside. "Do you feel better?" She asked as she sat upright and then leaned onto the arm of the sofa behind her.

"Much." Callie said as she leaned in the same direction as Addison, nestling herself into the crook of Addison's arm. "I don't want to kill Izzie any more. Just maim her instead."

Addison laughed as she absent-mindedly stroked Callie's hair. "That's a step in the right direction." Both women fell silent for several moments. The only sound made in that time was a single relaxed hum that emanated from Callie's mouth.

"Thanks, Addy." Callie said softly.

"For letting you get drunk? No problem." Addison said.

Callie chuckled as she slid up a little to look Addison in the face. "No. For being my friend… talking me in off the ledge." Callie said.

"You weren't on the ledge." Addison replied. "You were in Daddy's office, looking for the key to his gun cabinet."

"Yeah I was." Callie said with another chuckle. "But seriously… thank you. This is where I need to be right now."

"Anytime Cal." Addison said sweetly. Before either one of them had realized it, they were mere inches from the others face. Without a moment's hesitation, natural instinct kicked in and drew the two women together for a short, sweet, simple peck on the lips that made each woman withdraw more slowly than they would have imagined. "Was that… the vodka talking?" Addison asked softly as her eyes darted, searching Callie's for the answer to a question that she was unsure of.

Callie was equally confused as to what had just happened in that moment. "I… don't… think so." Callie answered in a near whisper.

"How… do we know for sure?" Addison asked.

Callie took a moment to think about her answer. "Well… do you think you'll remember tonight in the morning?"

"I'm not that drunk." Addison responded.

"Me either." Callie said.

"Do you… want to kiss me again?" Addison asked gingerly.

Callie paused. "I… think… I do."

"Okay." Addison whispered just before their lips met again. Several moments into the soft kiss, the intensity began to grow. Lips parted. Tongues flickered. Soft moans escaped. Angst melted away. Grief disappeared. Warmth enveloped. They broke the kiss and began slowly and erotically kissing each other's face and neck.

"What are we doing?" Callie asked breathlessly as Addison kissed her neck.

"Let's save all our questions for the end." Addison answered in equally breathless fashion just before arriving at Callie's pulse point and applying just the amount of pressure to allow another layer of Callie's inhibitions to peel away.

"Oh god Addison… yes."

**END OF FLASHBACK**

Autumn lay on top of Addison, fingers thrusting. Addison, from her bottom position, was doing the same to Autumn. The pitch battle for ultimate release was in full engagement. Both women, with sweat glistening in the soft lamplight, moaned and grunted, their climaxes mere moments away.

Addison went first. Autumn's fingers demonstrated the precision and dexterity that made her THE up-and-coming surgeon at Mercy West. Addison couldn't remember the last time she came as hard as she did with Autumn. And yet she did. It was her last night with Callie.

Addison seemed to find Autumn's sweet spot. The younger woman panted and gasped, aroused to the fullest extent she knew possible, shocked that Addison rocked her as thoroughly as she was. Autumn once told Lexie that if she could find the woman that could do to her what Mel Gibson did to Marisa Tomei in What Women Want, that woman would be the one. In her first encounter with Addison, she seemed to strike gold. Autumn's orgasm was so strong that it left her breathless and speechless for several minutes.

In that time, as Autumn lay next to Addison, thinking about when and where their next encounter was going to be, Addison's thoughts traveled back in time – April 25th 2005 to be exact – to the night Callie and Addison became more than just colleagues and friends.

"You must've talked to my last girlfriend." Autumn said with an air of breathless awe.

Despite her wandering mind, Addison was able to decipher Autumn's words. "We had a nice conversation about keys that unlock secret treasures." Addison joked.

"Well… good job, locksmith. Or should I say, licksmith?" Autumn teased. That joke brought a smile to Addison's lips. _She's kinda really cute. _Addison thought. "Well, I better get going. I'm sure you have a long day tomorrow." Autumn moved to slowly get up.

"What's your rush?" Addison asked. "You think this old woman only has one session in her?"

Autumn smirked. "You want me to get your Centrum Silver out of the bathroom?" She joked.

Addison's response was to grab Autumn's thick mane of hair and pull the diminutive cutie to her. "I won't be the only one needing their vitamins in the morning." Addison then laid a deep kiss on Autumn that immediately cranked up the intensity. Addison had plenty more where that came from. After all, she had plenty of memories of Callie to keep her going.

**It's been two weeks and two days since I've updated this story and you don't know how close I came to just giving it up. I hit a major block in terms of my creativity and no ideas would flow for this story. But yesterday, the ideas started flowing and I think we are back on track. I don't believe it will take another two weeks to update this story. Glad you're enjoying it so far. Happy thanksgiving! I'll see you after the holiday with chapter seven.**

**PLEASE REVIEW**


	7. To Tell The Truth

**Disclaimer: Characters are owned and produced by ShondaLand Productions, Touchstone Television, The Mark Gordon Company and ABC Studios. I am just borrowing them for these stories. Original characters are owned by the author of this story.**

**Author's Note: To Tell the Truth is an American television game show created by Bob Stewart and produced by Goodson-Todman Productions that has been aired intermittently in various formats since 1956, hosted by various television personalities. It is one of two game shows in the United States to have aired at least one version every decade for the past six decades. (The other is The Price Is Right, also originally created by Stewart for Goodson-Todman and currently American TV's longest running daily game.) To Tell the Truth has been seen first-run either on network television or in syndication a total of 25 seasons, just exceeding the 24 of What's My Line? and outpacing the 20 of I've Got a Secret.**

**The basic premise of the show consisted of a panel of four celebrities correctly identifying a contestant (a "central character") from a choice of three possibilities, members of a "team of challengers." One of the contestants normally held an unusual occupation (a premise similar to the show's sister, What's My Line?) or had done something noteworthy, and it is this person whom the panel had to attempt to identify. Two of the people will tell lies, while the real person has sworn "to tell the truth."**

**Thank you, Wikipedia.**

**

* * *

Breathe In, Breathe Out**

_**Chapter 7**_

**To Tell the Truth**

**Friday, May 9, 2008 – 1:30 pm – Seattle Grace Cafeteria**

Erica sat at the circular table awaiting the arrival of her woman. As she sat, she intently eyed the tall redhead that was in line talking and laughing with Derek and Mark. There was something about Addison that she couldn't quite put her finger on; something that just rubbed her the wrong way. It had only been four days since she had been back but with the exception of the staff meeting on Monday and the chance meeting at the restaurant two nights earlier, she had yet to have so much as a casual chat with Addison.

Erica eyed the statuesque surgeon from head to toe; from the top of her two hundred dollar hairdo down to the three hundred dollar pair of stilettos on her feet. _Who in the hell wears three hundred dollar heels to work at the hospital anyway? _Erica thought to herself. _What's so special about Addison that these people just seem to flock to her anyway? She's tall, got fiery red hair, legs for days, nice butt… okay, I get it. _ Erica mused to herself. _I see what Callie saw in her. I just didn't like that exchange they had the other night. I just… this is crazy. Callie is over her, she said so herself. _The head of cardiothoracic surgery continued to eyeball Addison as she made her way to the register only to be snapped out of her studies by the voice of one of the last people she felt like being bothered with at that moment.

"You've already got a hot surgeon in your bed. Stop being so damned greedy." Erica looked to her immediate right and came nearly nose to nose with a smirking Mark Sloane.

"Sloane, I swear to God…" Erica huffed in a muted voice.

"Save that for the bedroom. Now…" Mark said as he sat down next to the visibly uncomfortable Erica. "Why were you undressing Addison with your eyes?"

"I was not undress… what do you want anyway?" Erica snapped.

"Answer my question." Mark demanded.

"What do you want?" Erica shot back.

"Answer… my question." Mark requested again.

"I was not **undressing her** with my eyes. I was studying her." Erica said as she noticed Addison and Derek sit down at a table across the cafeteria from her position.

"She's not your competition." Mark said.

"I know that." Erica said.

"I don't think you do." Mark retorted. "I've seen the way you and Callie are with each other. You've got that woman's nose so open it's almost comical. How these people don't know you're flipping each other's switches is beyond me."

"It's always about sex with you, isn't it?" Erica said.

"Most of the time. But I'm not talking about that." Mark answered. He paused momentarily when he saw Callie walk in and head to the food line. Erica spotted her as well just as Callie spotted Addison and threw her hand up and smiled. "I'm talking about the pure companionship and camaraderie the two of you share. That's why you two are The Erica and Callie Show."

At that precise moment, Callie locked eyes with Erica. Callie put a serious look on her face and quickly nodded her head upward once and tapped her chest twice followed by a sideways peace sign. That caused Erica to begin cracking up. It took Erica several seconds to collect herself before she returned the gesture back to Callie who chuckled and continued through the line. Mark looked at Erica and cocked his head to the side awaiting her explanation.

"We… saw this movie last night…" Erica started.

"Oh for God's sake would you two just announce it to the staff already!" Mark whisper-yelled. "That was practically foreplay right there."

"Get away from my table. I swear there is no talking to you." Erica spat.

"You tell me two other doctors in this hospital that would have done that at that particular moment for any reason." Mark challenged. Erica opened her mouth but no names came to the tip of her tongue. Her brain scrambled to search for two names but could find none. "My point exactly. Callie and Addison were… warm and comforting. They were… are friends, but you two have something deeper than they ever did. It's like you two were cut from similar pieces of cloth."

"I just picked up something from Addison…" Erica said.

"Are you doing everything necessary to keep Callie happy?" Mark asked.

"Yeah." Erica said.

"Then shut up, stop worrying and enjoy the ride for as long as it lasts." Mark said.

Erica took a moment to ponder the advice that was dispensed. "Congratulations." Erica said just as Callie got within earshot. "You're not a prick today."

Mark stood up and grinned. "The day is still young." He said with a smirk. "Doctor Torres." He acknowledged Callie as he left.

"Doctor Sloane." Callie said. "So why is he not a prick today?"

"He actually said something to me that made sense." Erica said.

"Care to share?" Callie inquired.

"It's not important." Erica said. "So how's it been so far?"

"Quiet so far. A couple of consults and some paperwork. Got a meeting with the Chief at three. You?" Callie asked.

"I had an angioplasty a couple of hours ago but that's pretty much it." Erica said.

Callie stabbed at her salad and took a bite. "So I guess you'll have some energy tonight." She said without looking at Erica.

"And what will I need energy for, Miss Calliope?" Erica asked playfully.

"I told you not to call me that. Makes me sound like I should be hosting a kids program on PBS." Callie chided.

"I think it's adorable." Erica teased.

"Fine. Then I'll just call you Mistress Gretchen. How about that?" Callie shot back.

Erica's cheeks reddened slightly. "That is a private name, just for you, in certain situations." Erica whispered. "Okay? Candy?" It was Callie's turn to blush as she dropped her head and tore into her salad again. "So… about tonight…"

"Hey… you two!" Erica looked up to see the object of her earlier study looking down at the two of them.

"Addison. Hi." Erica said with a bit of surprise in her voice.

"Sorry to interrupt…" Addison began.

"No problem." Callie said.

"No problem at all." Erica said.

"Good. I just wanted to find out what time we're meeting tonight." Addison said.

Erica was befuddled by Addison's statement and her face showed it. "Meeting… tonight." She said.

"For drinks." Callie said. "I told you last night." That didn't seem to register in Erica's brain. "Before you went to sleep I told you that we were going to Joe's with Addison and… Autumn, right?" Addison nodded her head.

Erica nodded her head and raised her index finger. "Drinks. Joe's. Right. It's been one of those days." Erica said.

"I've had a few of those myself." Addison said with a chuckle.

"Great. So… seven-thirty okay?" Callie asked.

"Works for me." Addison said.

"Barring an emergency quadruple by-pass… count me in." Erica said.

"Awesome. Seven-thirty it is." Callie said just as Addison's pager went off.

"Izzie. Well, duty calls. See you later." Addison said as she turned to leave.

"Tried to sneak a fastball by me, huh?" Erica said.

"What are you talking about?" Callie said.

"You know good and well after three glasses of wine and a full stomach that I don't remember shit you tell me right before I go to sleep." Erica whisper-spat.

"You looked at me and said it was okay!" Callie whisper-yelled. "And how dare you accuse me of trying to sneak anything past you! What is with you anyway? You act like you don't even like Addison."

_She's not your competition. _Mark's words rang in her head as Erica took in Callie's last statement. "I do… like Addison and… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have accused you. We always talk about having…" Erica lowered her voice even further for her next two words. "… couples friends… so we are going to have an awesome time with Addison and her friend."

Seeing Erica as contrite as she was made Callie confess. "Maybe I did try to… squeeze one past you. Maybe I should have told you after the second glass." Callie admitted. "Forgive me?"

"This time. Next time you might not be so lucky." Erica said. Callie smiled before biting into her sandwich. "Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot." Callie said with a mouthful of chicken salad sandwich.

"What do you think would happen if we… if the hospital knew we were… seeing each other?" Erica asked.

Callie chuckled. "A lot of people would release a lot of bodily waste due to their shock and disbelief."

"I'm serious." Erica said. That statement caused Callie to swallow her bite of sandwich and sit up straighter. "I am as proud as I possibly can be of you and me. Derek and Meredith don't give a damn about who knows about them, Alex and Izzie don't give a damn, Cristina and Burke didn't give a damn, hell, you and George didn't give a damn. What do you say?"

"It's a little different…" Callie started.

"Because both of us have two x chromosomes?" Erica asked. "They can't fire us. They can't make us stop working together. What's the worst thing that can happen? They talk about us behind our backs? They already call us The Erica and Callie Show and I'll bet more than one of them has wondered about us." Erica paused. Callie allowed her words to sink in. "I love you and I want people to know it."

Callie took a moment to think about what Erica had just said. "I would like to go to Joe's and dance with you." Callie said softly. She then paused for another moment. "I love you too. Fuck it. Let's do it. My parents know anyway so… who cares what everybody else thinks."

Erica smiled a broad, proud smile. "Okay. How do we do this?" She asked.

"I guess climbing up on the table screwing each other right now is too much, huh?" Callie joked.

"Just a little." Erica chuckled.

"I know. My meeting with the Chief." Callie said. "He is the Chief. I think he should be the first to know."

"Well, Mark, Derek and Addison know so technically, he'd be the fourth to know." Erica said.

"Bailey knows so technically, he'd be the fifth to know." Callie replied.

"Bailey knows!" Erica whisper-yelled. She then realized something. "Then again, that woman knows everything that goes on around here so I shouldn't be surprised. Are you sure you want to open this can of worms?"

"You convinced me just now. For once I'd like to leave everybody around here speechless." Callie said.

"So… I'll meet you at the Chief's office at three then." Erica said.

"Three o'clock." Callie said.

"Three o'clock." Erica reiterated for her own benefit. "Might as well be high noon at the OK Corral."

**Friday, May 9, 2008 – 2:58 pm – just outside of Dr. Webber's office**

Callie tapped her foot nervously as she waited for Erica. _She decided not to show. I get all worked up to do this and she's not gonna show. _Callie thought to herself. _Great. I was actually excited about coming out for the first time and now she stands me up. Well, I'll show her. No sex for her for a week. No, two weeks. No, a month. Who am I kidding? I wouldn't last three days. Damnit, Erica!_

"Hey." Callie wheeled around to see Erica standing behind her.

"Hey." Callie said.

"We still doing this?" Erica asked.

"I'm game if you are." Callie said.

"I'm game. Let's do it." Erica said.

Callie walked up to the door and knocked. _"Come in!"_

"Afternoon, Chief." Callie said after stepping inside.

"Doctor Torres." The Chief said before looking up from his paperwork to see not only Callie but Erica as well. "Doctor… Hahn, did… we have a meeting today?"

"No… sir, you didn't. I asked her to come with me." Callie said nervously.

Dr. Webber chuckled. "You brought a friend for moral support? I'm not going to bite you Doctor Torres." He joked.

"I know that, Chief. I… We wanted to talk to you about something rather important." Callie said.

"As did I. That's why I wanted to meet with you… privately." Dr. Webber said.

"Well, whatever you want to say, you can say it in front of Dr. Hahn. I'm gonna tell her anyway." Callie said.

Dr. Webber studied both women. "Now you have me curious. Why don't you tell me what you want to talk about." He said.

"You'll want to go first. Trust me when I tell you that our topic of conversation will take up more time than yours." Callie said with a nervous chuckle.

"All right. If you say so." Dr. Webber said. "Doctor Torres, Seattle Grace technically has gone over a year without a head of orthopedic surgery, but that was in title only. As far as I'm concerned you've held that de facto position and today I want to make it official. Head of Orthopedic Surgery is yours if you want it."

Callie let out the breath that she had been holding since Dr. Webber's first utterance of the term "orthopedic surgery". Both she and Erica then let out an incredulous chuckle. "Are you kidding me? Hell yes I want it!" Callie exclaimed. "Oh my…" Callie's entire face lit up as tears began pooling in her eyes. She then did what was natural for someone to do when they receive good news in the presence of someone they love. She turned to Erica threw her arms open to embrace her, embraced her and then gave Erica a huge, euphoric kiss. It took about five seconds for the fact that she was kissing Erica in front of their boss to sink in. When it did, she simply broke the kiss and turned her head to await the fate that she knew was going to befall them.

"I take it THAT was what you wanted to talk to me about." Dr. Webber said.

Erica wiped Callie's lip gloss from her lips and spoke. "Doctor Torres and I…"

"I get it. No need to finish that statement." Dr. Webber said before pausing to let the idea that two of his female surgeons are seeing each other sink in. "I'll tell you the same thing that I've told Doctors Shepherd, Grey, Stevens and Karev… as long as it doesn't interfere with the operation of my hospital, then I could care less who you go home with at night. But the minute it does, then I care. And if I care, your relationship becomes that much more difficult. Understood?"

"Absolutely, Chief." Callie said.

"Of course, Richard." Erica said.

"Now I have a board meeting to go to so Callie, we will meet tomorrow and go over staffing and scheduling for your department." Dr. Webber said as he stood up and picked up his portfolio. Callie and Erica headed for the door. "And ladies, one more thing…" Callie and Erica turned to face The Chief just before he gave them a sage piece of advice. "Just remember that the on-call rooms have locks on the doors." Dr. Webber then dropped his voice into an ominous tone. "Use them."

"Yes… sir." Callie said with slightly more than an air of shock in her voice as she opened the door and walked out with Erica behind her. "Well that went a lot smoother than I thought it would."

"I told you… he can't fire us. With as many people that are sleeping with each other on this staff, there was nothing he could say to us but 'be professional'." Erica said. "Now it's the rest of these jackals that I'm worried about."

"I was thinking about that. I have an idea." Callie said. "I have a surgery in forty-five minutes. Care to watch?"

"Calliope Torres, what do you have up your sleeve?" Erica asked.

"Like I said before, for once I'd like to leave everybody around here speechless." Callie said. "Just make sure you're in the observation gallery in forty-five minutes." Callie then gave Erica a quick wink and smile before starting across the catwalk.

**Friday, May 9, 2008 – 4:02 pm – Operating Room number four**

Callie was the surgeon of record for the below-the-knee amputation of a diabetic, with Doctors Bailey and Stevens assisting. Izzie was a last-minute replacement for Cristina who was assigned pit duty as punishment for being… herself. The thought of coming out to the hospital with the woman who put the final nail in the coffin of her marriage to George standing across the operating table from her made Callie briefly reconsider carrying out her plan, but she decided that having one of "The Three Stooges", as she sometimes referred to Meredith, Cristina and Izzie, in the room was worth it.

"All right. Everybody ready?" Callie asked. "Does anybody mind if I play some music? It helps me focus."

"The O.R. is yours, Doctor Torres." Bailey said. Izzie simply shot Callie a quick, neutral glance before glancing up at the observation gallery where Meredith, Alex, Mark, George, Erica and several interns including Lexie were looking on. Callie glanced up and caught Erica's eye and smiled underneath her mask, a gesture that Erica was able to discern from her elevated, glass-enclosed position.

"Nurse, would you mind…" Callie asked, gesturing with her head over at the CD player on a table behind and to her right. The nurse nodded in acknowledgement and walked over and took the CD out of its case and slipped it in. She then pressed play. It took a few seconds for the song to begin playing. When it did, the curtain went up on the latest and what would soon be the most talked about episode of The Erica and Callie Show to date. Several strong synthesized drum beats echoed throughout the operating room and through the speakers in the observation gallery, and then, the singing began; both on the CD and by its creator, Doctor Callie Torres.

_**This was never the way I planned  
Not my intention  
I got so brave, drink in hand  
Lost my discretion  
It's not what, I'm used to  
Just wanna try you on  
I'm curious for you  
Caught my attention**_

_**I kissed a girl and I liked it  
The taste of her cherry chapstick**_

Every eye in the operating room and in the observation gallery locked on to Callie as she belted out the chorus to Katy Perry's just-released hit single, I Kissed a Girl.

"Come on! There's somebody else in here that knows she needs to be singing!" Callie exclaimed. It was then that every eye in the observation gallery and operating room became fixated on the blonde surgeon leaning against the wall of the observation gallery with her arms folded, slowly shaking her head and chuckling silently to herself. It was then that Erica Lynette Hahn opened her mouth to sing, confirming the suspicions of many in attendance.

_**I kissed a girl just to try it  
I hope my boyfriend don't mind it  
It felt so wrong  
It felt so right  
Don't mean I'm in love tonight  
I kissed a girl and I liked it  
I liked it**_

"I'll be damned." Mark said softly to himself. "They actually came out."

Alex had a goofy, self-satisfied grin wash over his face as he nudged a shell-shocked George with his elbow several times. "What did I tell you? Twenty bucks, Pony Boy. Pay up." Alex said just before a near catatonic George mindlessly reached into his pocket to pull out a twenty dollar bill.

Meredith looked over at her half-sister with her mouth agape. Lexie returned the look of shock to the older Grey before they glanced over at Erica again.

Meanwhile, back in the operating room…

"Ten blade." Callie said in between humming the melody of the song. Doctor Bailey waited for Callie to make her first incision before speaking.

"Doctor Torres, are you… trying to tell us something?" Bailey inquired, making sure that Callie knew what she was subjecting herself to.

Callie continued making her incisions as she responded. "There has been much speculation in and around this hospital over the past year and frankly I am tired of the whispering. So yes… Doctor Bailey, I am trying to tell the hospital something. That song was my way of… announcing… retractor please… that Doctor Hahn and I… are more than colleagues and best friends… she is my… McDreamy." Callie fell silent to allow that declaration to sink into the grey matter of everyone assembled. "Now that is the only thing I will publicly say about the matter. Now all of you can stop guessing… stop wondering about us. We are out, we are proud and we are in love. Now… back to the business of removing this man's leg. Doctor Stevens, you are going to peform the ligature of the artery and vein."

Up in the gallery, Meredith looked over at Erica who was still leaning against the wall with her arms folded, watching her girlfriend work.

"Doctor Hahn?" Meredith said.

"Yes, Doctor Grey." Erica said.

"Congratulations." Meredith offered. "You make a… cute couple."

"Thank you Doctor Grey. But as Doctor Torres said, it is back to the business of removing that man's leg so I would suggest refocusing on that." Erica said in a matter-of-fact tone. "But just for the record, we do not make a **cute couple**." Everyone in the gallery mentally winced, expecting some measure of scolding for making such a statement. They were taken by surprise by Erica's concluding statement. "We make a stunningly beautiful, surface-of-the-sun hot couple." With that, Erica unfolded her arms, turned and walked out of the gallery leaving everyone there speechless.

After the surgery, the staff was abuzz regarding the public pronouncement of Erica and Callie's relationship. Callie couldn't help but smile every time she walked past a small group of doctors or nurses that would cease talking when they spotted her, only to start up again when they thought she was out of earshot. Erica too experienced a similar dynamic as she walked through the halls of Seattle Grace. Erica already cared little about what people thought about her personally so the whispering didn't bother her. What she worried about was Callie and how she would respond. At one point, their paths crossed on one of the catwalks.

"It is so awesome. All conversation stops when I walk down the hallway. We are all they can talk about. And you know what? I don't care. Let 'em talk." Callie said.

"I am so glad you said that. I was worried about how you'd take it." Erica said.

"I'm right as rain." Callie beamed before glimpsing The Chief round the corner and make a beeline for their position. The look on his face suggested that the conversation was not going to be a pleasant one. "Ohhhh… shit. Hurricane Richard. Twelve o'clock." Erica wheeled around just in time to catch the opening wind gust from the hurricane.

"Do you two want to tell me why the hell you chose to use one of my O.R.'s for a goddamn coming out party?" Dr. Webber fumed. Because he rarely used curse words to get his point across, they realized just how vexed he was. "I kissed a girl, and I liked it, the taste of her cherry chapstick?" Both Callie and Erica chuckled at The Chief's monotone, staccato delivery of the verse. "I don't find a damn thing funny about that song being used in my O.R. as a personal statement of defiance against office gossip." Both women quickly wiped the grins off of their faces and looked The Chief in the eye as he continued. "Doctor Torres, don't make me regret my decision to make you a surgical department head. And Doctor Hahn, I expect you to set a better example of professionalism." He then paused for a moment. "Grow up. Both of you… or else Mercy West or Seattle Presbyterian will have new additions to their surgical staffs." Dr. Webber stalked away leaving Erica and Callie in his wake.

"I guess he told you." Callie said jokingly.

"Me? You were the one that played the song and I believe you were the attending of record in the O.R." Erica shot back.

"I saw you singing up there." Callie said.

"You needed my harmony to thicken up your solo." Erica said.

"I'll give you something to thicken up all right." Callie said.

"You don't need any help in that department, sweetheart." Erica said as she gave Callie a quick head-to-toe once-over. Erica looked around and didn't see anyone within earshot. "On-call room, third floor west. Ten minutes."

"Are you serious?" Callie asked.

"I feel like being bad today. Trust me, it won't take long." Erica said, the arousal now written all over her face.

Callie looked down at her watch. "Ten minutes… go." Callie began walking quickly to get to her next destination to make notes on the chart in her hand. Erica went in the opposite direction at speed equal to Callie's so she can meet Callie for their on-call rendezvous.

**Friday, May 9, 2008 – 7:19 pm – Addison's office**

Addison was sitting at her desk going over paperwork when there was a knock on her door. "Come in." Addison said. She lifted her head just as the door eased open and Lexie walked in. "Doctor Grey. How was the amputation? Did you learn a lot from Doctor Torres?" Addison said as she looked back down at her paperwork to finish the note she was taking.

"More than you could possibly imagine." Lexie said in loaded fashion.

"What? Did her scrub pants fall down around her ankles? I know somebody that had that happen to them once." Addison said, failing to reveal that the someone she was referring to was herself.

"No. But this was just as shocking and… exposing." Lexie said. "Doctor Torres and Doctor Hahn came out in front of an O.R. full of doctors and nurses and the whole gallery."

"Came out. Came out as in…" Addison started before being cutoff.

"As in…" Lexie then began singing. "Girls in tight dresses who drag with mustaches…"

"Okay! I get it." Addison said. "Wow. I never though she'd…"

"You knew?" Lexie exclaimed.

"She's my best friend. Of course I knew." Addison said.

"Did you two ever…" Lexie started.

"Doctor Grey." Addison chided.

"None of my business. Sorry." Lexie said.

"No. It's… fine. I've already told you more than ninety-eight percent of the people that work here know about my love life anyway." Addison said. "Yes. For over a year. Right up until I left for L.A." Lexie gasped. "BUT… no one but Doctor Sloane, Doctor Bailey and Doctor Hahn know about Callie and I so…"

"My lips are sealed." Lexie said.

Addison looked at her watch. "I've got to go. I'm meeting them for drinks tonight." She said as she began to straighten the papers on her desk. "Are you going home?"

"In a few. I have to pick up one set of labs and then I am done." Lexie said as she stood up and headed for the office door.

"Doctor Grey?" Addison said.

Lexie turned around. "My lips are sealed." Lexie said. Addison nodded and Lexie flashed a small smile before turning to leave. Seconds later, her Blackberry went off.

She checked her text messages and had one from Callie. **Headed 2 Joes now. Meet us there. Whatchu drinkin?**

Addison eyed the text message for a moment, carefully measuring her answer. A point had to be made and she was about to make it. Addison typed her response in and hit send, smirking to herself.

Meanwhile, Callie was waiting for Erica to come out of the bathroom when Addison's text message arrived. When Callie read the response, her mouth fell open slightly.

**Split a Torpedo with me… for old times sake.**

Callie knew exactly what happened the last time they split a Torpedo, two in fact. Each woman had the equivalent of one full glass of the powerful cocktail and it had an interesting effect on them.

**FLASHBACK – Saturday, August 13, 2005 -10 pm – Joe's Bar**

Callie and Addison were nearing the end of their first Torpedo, an alcoholic cocktail consisting of a half an ounce each of vodka, whiskey, brandy and Cointreau, an ounce of light rum and a quarter of an ounce of Crème de Menthe.

"This is… by far THE… most incredibly… drunk-inducing drink I've ever had." Callie said as she licked her lips and took another sip.

"My liver is gonna kick my ass in the morning." Addison said causing both of them to laugh.

"Oh, I so needed this." Callie said. "Thank you for getting me piss drunk tonight."

"It was my honor and pleasure." Addison said, lifting her glass. Callie practically burned a hole through Addison as she looked at her. "What? Do I have something on my face? Am I drooling?"

Callie leaned over and lowered her voice to a whisper. "I am so horny right now. I want you to do nasty, nasty things to me. Things that will get me arrested in at least twenty countries." Callie purred.

"How horny are you?" Addison matched Callie's purr.

"If you had a dick right now I would so let you fuck me in the ass." Callie whisper-growled in her alcohol-fueled stupor.

Addison searched every inch of Callie's face with her eyes before turning toward the bar and calling out, "JOE! CALL US A CAB RIGHT NOW!"

Callie and Addison spilled into Callie's apartment all over each other. With ounces of Torpedo coursing through their veins, they made quick work of their clothes. They practically ran down the hallway toward Callie's bedroom but the passionate Latina simply couldn't make it. She grabbed Addison and pinned her to the wall, lifting her leg up and wrapping it around her waist. She roughly kissed and sucked Addison's neck and breasts before returning to her crimson lips. Seconds later, Addison grabbed Callie by the waist and pushed her back to the other wall pinning her and returning the same rough passionate treatment that she had received.

"Get in here." Addison ordered as she grabbed Callie's wrist and dragged her into the bedroom, tossing her onto the bed. Callie barely had time to position herself on the bed when Addison dipped her head and began devouring Callie's center causing her to cry out. Callie was overwhelmed from the moment Addison started on her. In less than two minutes her body relented, her powerful climax causing her to shudder. Addison gave her no time to recover as she intensified her lovemaking. Callie was now incapable of catching her breath. She was on overload. Addison had complete control. Callie was clutching the sheets and writhing in tortured ecstasy as Addison continued to pour gasoline on her raging fire. For a second time, Callie had a powerful orgasm rip through her body leaving her breathless. But Addison was not finished yet. Callie's second orgasm gave Addison a second wind as she slid up and thrust two fingers inside Callie's wetness and began pumping for deal life. Callie let out a guttural scream and locked eyes with Addison as her eyes and facial expression challenged Addison to make her next orgasm one to remember. Addison did not disappoint as Callie's third orgasm was more powerful than the first two.

**END OF FLASHBACK**

"Callie?" Callie snapped out of her flashback to see Erica standing in front of her.

Erica grinned. "You had some nasty thoughts rolling around in your head didn't you?" Erica purred. "I know. I was just thinking about the on-call room too."

Callie heard Erica and answered her, but was not thinking about the same encounter. "That was so fucking hot." Callie said lustily in an airy, far-off sounding voice.

"You're telling me." Erica said. "Come on. Let's hurry up and ditch them so we can go back to my place and finish what we started." They started for the exit to the hospital.

"I suddenly have the taste for a Torpedo." Callie announced as she looked down at her cell phone screen briefly before sticking it back into her purse.

* * *

**All the way to heaven, seventh heaven, all the way to heaven, all the, all the, all the, all the way to heaven, seventh heaven… **

**Gotta love Doug E. Fresh and the Get Fresh Crew. We have completed seven chapters of this story. How are you enjoying it so far? I had a poll going before this story started asking you which woman should Callie choose, Erica or Addison. I am going to ask the question again to see if your opinion has changed any. Look for it on my profile page. Thanks for reading this far. I've got some more good stuff for you and a couple of surprises along the way. Stay tuned!**

**PLEASE REVIEW**

**New Author's Note: Give me a couple of weeks but a brand new chapter of Breathe In, Breathe Out will greet you in 2011. It has been a long time but LaughLoveLive is back. Let's see if I've still got it. ;)  
**


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